Venezuela's ruling party expresses solidarity with Cuba over death of Commander Ramiro Valdés

Venezuela's ruling United Socialist Party (PSUV) has conveyed its solidarity with Cuba following the passing of Commander Ramiro Valdés, a prominent figure in the Cuban Revolution. Valdés died on Sunday in Havana.

The PSUV issued a statement honoring Valdés, referring to him as the "youngest attacker of the Moncada Barracks, expeditionary of the Granma, combatant of the Rebel Army in the Sierra Maestra alongside Commanders Fidel and Raúl Castro, and protagonist, with Che Guevara, of the battle of Santa Clara that defined the triumph of the Cuban Revolution."

The party also emphasized the "great friendship" between Valdés and the late Venezuelan President Hugo Chávez, noting Valdés's "valuable contribution" to the fraternity between Cuba and Venezuela. In recent years, Valdés served as deputy prime minister in Cuba, overseeing socio-economic portfolios including housing construction, material production, electricity generation, and industrial investments.

Valdés was among the last surviving members of the "historic generation," the inner circle that, led by Fidel Castro, seized power in 1959 and established a Soviet-style socialist system in Cuba. His revolutionary career included participation in the 1953 attack on the Moncada Barracks, the 1956 Granma yacht expedition, and the 1958 guerrilla invasion from east to west, where he served as Che Guevara's second-in-command.

Since the revolution's triumph in 1959, Valdés held significant positions, including organizing the security apparatus of the nascent government. He was a founder of the State Security Department (DSE) and the General Directorate of Intelligence (DGI), bodies tasked with monitoring, infiltrating, and repressing opposition and anti-communist elements within Cuba.