Politics
According to Venezuelan opposition leader Américo Martín, the visit of Cuban Minister of Technology Ramiro Valdés and his "obvious presence" - he had been before in a private visit - have multiple interpretations. For instance, it could be a gambit of Fidel Castro, for whom a loss of power by Hugo Chávez would put Cuba into a "desperate" situation, to activate a radical pro-Chávez movement.

The former guerrilla leader made this analysis as part of a weekly debate of Grupo Diálogo, which is coordinated by the opposition leaders Carlos Raúl Hernández and Pompeyo Márquez.

Based on his personal acquaintance of Ramiro Valdés and brothers Fidel and Raúl Castro, Martín said that without the financial support provided by Chávez, Cuba would fall into the US hands through the development of an economic system similar to the Chinese model. Martín said that China has excellent relations with Washington and explained that Raúl Castro supports this model, unlike Fidel.

The Venezuelan opposition leader said that Fidel Castro has a "besieged spirit." He speculated that part of the plan to strengthen politically the position of Chávez would be to establish several task forces with the 10,000 Cubans working in Venezuela in order to increase repression, along with pro-Chávez radical groups. Martín said that thanks to Fidel's support, Valdés has amassed a great fortune.