Cuba's top diplomat in Washington condemned the U.S. State Department's reaction to Fidel Castro's stumble, calling it evidence of what he described as the Bush administration's poor moral character. Dagoberto Rodriguez, who heads Cuba's interests section in the American capital, made the remarks to reporters on Friday, 22 October 2004.
The dispute arose after State Department spokesman Richard Boucher declined to wish Castro a speedy recovery and made pointed remarks about flaws in Cuba's communist system. The two countries lack formal diplomatic ties but each maintains an interests section in the other's capital.
Castro had fallen on his side while descending stairs after addressing art school graduates in Santa Clara, a city about 280 kilometers east of Havana, on the evening of 21 October. Bodyguards helped him up, and he quickly reassured onlookers he was fine, even joking the next day about news photographs of him on the ground.
The incident, caught on television, has fueled questions about succession in Cuba, which has been subject to a U.S. trade embargo for more than four decades.
Historical summary. TurkishPress restated this AFP wire report, first published in October 2004, in its own words.