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Article: Cuba.(GeoSkills: Reading a Country Map)(Country overview)
- Article from:
- Junior Scholastic
- Article date:
- April 30, 2007
CopyrightCOPYRIGHT 2007 Scholastic, Inc. This material is published under license from the publisher through the Gale Group, Farmington Hills, Michigan. All inquiries regarding rights should be directed to the Gale Group. (Hide copyright information)
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Cuba is the largest and most populous island nation in the Caribbean.
Relations between Cuba and the U.S. soured after Fidel Castro took power in i959. When Cuba seized U.S.-owned businesses in 1960, the U.S. imposed a trade embargo, banning all trade except medicine and some food products. The U.S. broke off diplomatic relations, and Castro declared Cuba to be a Communist country.
FAST FACTS
AREA: 42,803 sq mi [about the size of Tennessee].
POPULATION: 11,400,000; 76% live in urban areas.
GOVERNMENT: Communist state. President Fidel Castro has headed the government since 1959. Failing health led him to temporarily transfer ...