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[-] vovchik_ilich@hexbear.net 7 points 1 month ago

if a country needs something, it's always better to have the ability to produce it locally

I fully agree, but this is materially impossible in an island-nation with 10mn inhabitants which is blockaded from international trade. You can't have enough specialists, industrial workers, resource extraction and refinement, food production etc. to have a fully functioning self-sustaining industry, it's impossible to stress enough how vital international trade is. The eastern block got away with self reliance because the former USSR was by far the largest country on Earth and the eastern block had a population of 300mn, this is materially not feasible in Cuba alone.

I believe it can achieve a level of autarky similar to the DPRK

The DPRK has 2.5 times the population, that's 2.5 times as much workforce and specialization. It's also not an island kilometers away from the USA, it's a peninsula touching China and Russia.

Ultimately I believe these questions about long term economic strategy and self-reliance are still quite important

I fully agree, I'm just saying that for the past 70 years it's been materially impossible to achieve this in Cuba, and given how they survived the Periodo Especial, they clearly followed the correct policy.

[-] Vostok_@hexbear.net 4 points 1 month ago

You make a great point, I just find it hard to accept that Cuba will always be in a vulnerable position, doomed by geography and demographics. I'm glad we had this exchange.

[-] vovchik_ilich@hexbear.net 6 points 1 month ago* (last edited 1 month ago)

On the other hand, I believe that precisely because of geography and demographics, Africa has the potential to become USSR2. Huge variety of climates, availability of natural resources, abundant sunlight for renewables, far from the USA, and except for northern Africa doesn't have a recent history of strong nation-states manufacturing nationalist propaganda against their neighbors, the vast plains of the Sahel create an uninterrupted possibility for cultural and economic exchange similar to the Great European Plain in the USSR. This might be copium, though, but I truly have hopes of seeing that in my lifetime. The history of colonialism would do wonders for propaganda and unification too

[-] Vostok_@hexbear.net 3 points 1 month ago* (last edited 1 month ago)

I share the same view as you on this, with the way imperial control mechanisms seem to be slowly withering away from Africa I believe it's not just an unfounded hope, we really might see it happen in the next 50 years. The eventual creation of a robust, self-sufficient AUSSR is likely part of the long term strategy of Chinese economic investments into the continent, as economic power grows so will leverage against systems of neocolonial control, while also creating a robust proletarian class.

A fun question to think about is where will the first spark of this movement start, where will borders start to dissolve first, I wonder.

[-] vovchik_ilich@hexbear.net 3 points 1 month ago

Hopefully in the future we can travel there and study it from themselves!! I hope to see statues of Gaddafi and Sankara all over hahaha

[-] AssortedBiscuits@hexbear.net 3 points 1 month ago

On the other hand, I believe that precisely because of geography and demographics, Africa has the potential to become USSR2.

One unified Africa under scientific socialism

[-] TreadOnMe@hexbear.net 4 points 1 month ago* (last edited 1 month ago)

The important thing is to think materialistically. Cuba isn't 'doomed' because of its geography, it is presented with different opportunities, and it is up to the community of proletarians, which is ideally represented through the state of the dictatorship of the proletariat, to recognize where those opportunities lie and create a labor force that can take advantage of them.

Cuba still possesses top of the line medical professionals, and likely one of the most comprehensive counter intelligence operations against the U.S.

Compare this to their neighbors, whose only real industries are fishing, financial crimes, sex work (non-derogatory), and tourism.

They work what they can.

this post was submitted on 09 Apr 2026
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