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Raul Castro, Cuban president

IRNA - Islamic Republic News Agency

Madrid, Feb 25, IRNA
Cuba-President
Raul Castro has been unanimously selected to succeed his brother Fidel as leader by Cuba's National Assembly.

Fidel Castro stepped down last week after nearly half a century in charge.

Raul has in effect been president since Fidel had major surgery in July 2006.

He chose 78-year-old Politburo official Machado Ventura as vice-president.

There had been speculation that Raul Castro, aged 76, would name one of Cuba's younger generation of communist leaders as his number two.

But he instead opted for one of the original leaders of Cuba's communist revolution.

Raul Castro said the Cuban government would continue to consult Fidel Castro, 81, on major decisions of state - a move backed by the National Assembly deputies.

Cubans in Havana discuss the priorities of their next president Raul Castro paid tribute to his older brother as he accepted the presidency and said that he was accepting the job on the understanding that Fidel Castro would remain as the "commander in chief of the revolution", a title he was given during the 1959 revolution.

Raul Castro had suggested implementing major economic reforms and "structural changes".

He has worked to ensure a smooth political transition, keeping the army loyal to the regime and strengthening the Communist Party's hold by introducing reforms and weeding out corrupt officials.

Venezuelan President Hugo Chavez was quick to congratulate Raul Castro on his appointment, leading a standing ovation to the new Cuban president on his weekly television program in Caracas.

"Let's applaud Raul, who is a comrade, a companion, more than the brother of Fidel," Chavez said.

Fidel Castro, who has ruled Cuba since leading a revolution in 1959, announced his retirement in a letter published on the website of the Cuban Communist Party's newspaper Granma last week.

He said he had not stepped down after undergoing emergency intestinal surgery in 2006 because he had had a duty to the Cuban people to prepare them for his absence.

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