Cuban Revolution Leader Ramiro Valdés Menéndez Passes Away at 94

Jun 23, 2026 at 11:04 AM

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Lanka Leader

Ramiro Valdés Menéndez, one of the leading figures of the Cuban Revolution and a former Vice Premier of Cuba, has died at the age of 94.

The announcement was made by Cuban President Miguel Díaz-Canel, who paid tribute to Valdés as a respected revolutionary and statesman. He also extended condolences to Valdés' family, acknowledging his longstanding service to the Cuban nation.

The Russian Embassy in Cuba likewise expressed condolences to the Cuban people and the Cuban government following the veteran leader's passing.

Valdés was one of the last surviving members of the generation that carried out the Cuban Revolution and was a founding member of the July 26 Movement, the organization led by Fidel Castro in the struggle against the government of Fulgencio Batista.

He took part in some of the most significant events that shaped modern Cuban history, including the attack on the Moncada Barracks in 1953 and the historic 1956 voyage of the yacht Granma, which marked the beginning of the revolutionary campaign against Batista's regime.

During the guerrilla war in Cuba's Sierra Maestra mountains, Valdés served as a deputy commander under Ernesto Che Guevara, playing a key role in the revolutionary movement that eventually brought Fidel Castro to power in 1959.

Following the revolution, Valdés held several senior positions in the Cuban government over many decades, becoming one of the country's most influential political figures and a prominent representative of the revolutionary generation.

His death marks the passing of another historic figure closely associated with the Cuban Revolution and the formative years of the modern Cuban state.