Russian President Meets Fidel

Russian President Dmitri Medvedev visited Cuba yesterday, where he met with both Raul and Fidel Castro. Details of his meeting with Fidel, who has not been seen in public since 2006, are unknown. His activities with Raul included laying a wreath at a monument devoted to Soviet soldiers who died while serving Cuba. The trip was the last leg on a four-country tour that is considered in some ways a response to America's growing presence in Eastern Europe. There is speculation that Russia will join a socialist trading bloc founded by Hugo Chavez and Castro.