Cuban Revolutionary Armed Forces The Cuban Revolutionary Armed Forces ( Spanish : " Fuerzas Armadas Revolucionarias " — FAR ) consist of ground forces , naval forces , air and air defence forces , and other paramilitary bodies including the Territorial Troops Militia ( " Milicias de Tropas Territoriales " — MTT ) , Youth Labor Army ( " Ejército Juvenil del Trabajo " — EJT ) , and the Defense and Production Brigades ( " Brigadas de Producción y Defensa " — BPD ) . The armed forces has long been the most powerful institution in Cuba and high - ranking generals are believed to play crucial roles in all conceivable succession scenarios . The military controls 60 percent of the economy through the management of hundreds of enterprises in key economic sectors . The military is also Raúl Castro ' s base . In numerous speeches , Raúl Castro has emphasized the military ' s role as a people ' s partner . From 1966 until the late 1980s , Soviet Government military assistance enabled Cuba to upgrade its military capabilities to number one in Latin America and project power abroad . The first Cuban military mission in Africa was established in Ghana in 1961 . Cuba ' s military forces appeared in Algeria , in 1963 , when a military medical brigade came over from Havana to support the regime . Since the 1960s , Cuba sent military forces to African and Arab countries ; Syria in 1973 , Ethiopia in 1978 , the Cuban intervention in Angola from 1975 to 1989 , and Nicaragua and El Salvador during the 1980s . The Soviet Union gave both military and financial aid to the Cubans . The tonnage of Soviet military deliveries to Cuba throughout most of the 1980s exceeded deliveries in any year since the military build - up during the 1962 Cuban missile crisis . In 1989 , the government instituted a clean up of the armed forces and the Ministry of Interior , convicting army Major General and Hero of The Republic of Cuba Arnaldo Ochoa , Ministry of Interior Colonel Antonio de la Guardia ( Tony la Guardia ) , and Ministry of Interior Brigadier General Patricio de la Guardia on charges of corruption and drug trafficking . This judgment is known in Cuba as " Causa 1 " ( Cause 1 ) . Ochoa and Antonio de la Guardia were executed . Following the executions , the Army was drastically downsized , the Ministry of Interior was moved under the informal control of Revolutionary Armed Forces chief General Raúl Castro ( Fidel Castro ' s brother ) , and large numbers of army officers were moved into the Ministry of Interior . Cuban military power has been sharply reduced by the loss of Soviet subsidies . Today , the Revolutionary Armed Forces number 79 , 000 regular troops . The DIA reported in 1998 that the country ' s paramilitary organizations , the Territorial Militia Troops , the Youth Labor Army , and the Naval Militia had suffered considerable morale and training degradation over the previous seven years but still retained the potential to " make an enemy invasion costly . " . Cuba also adopted a " war of the people " strategy that highlights the defensive nature of its capabilities . On September 14 , 2012 , a Cuban senior general agreed to further deepen military cooperation with China during a visit to Beijing . He said that Cuba was willing to enhance exchanges with the Chinese military and strengthen bilateral cooperation in personnel training and other areas . Army . In 1984 , according to Jane ' s Military Review , there were three major geographical commands , Western , Central , and Eastern . There were a reported 130 , 000 all ranks , and each command was garrisoned by an army comprising a single armoured division , a mechanised division , and a corps of three infantry divisions , though the Eastern Command had two corps totalling six divisions . A U . S . Defense Intelligence Agency assessment in the first half of 1998 said that the army ' s armour and artillery units were at low readiness levels due to ' severely reduced ' training , generally incapable of mounting effective operations above the battalion level , and that equipment was mostly in storage and unavailable at short notice . The same report said that Cuban special operations forces continue to train but on a smaller scale than beforehand , and that while the lack of replacement parts for its existing equipment and the current severe shortage of fuel were increasingly affecting operational capabilities , Cuba remained able to offer considerable resistance to any regional power . 2002 Organization . In 1999 the Revolutionary Army ( Ejercito Revolucionario ) represented approximately 70 percent of Cuba ' s regular military manpower . According to the IISS , the army ' s estimated 45 , 000 troops included 39 , 000 members of the Ready Reserves who were completing the forty - five days of annual active - duty service necessary for maintaining their status , as well as conscripts who were fulfilling their military service requirement . The IISS reported in 1999 that the army ' s troop formations consisted of four to five armored brigades ; nine mechanized infantry brigades ; an airborne brigade ; fourteen reserve brigades ; and the Border Brigade . In addition , there is an air defense artillery regiment and a surface - to - air missile brigade . Each of the three territorial armies is believed to be assigned at least one armored brigade - usually attached to the army ' s headquarters - as well as a mechanized infantry brigade . As well , it is known that the Border Brigade in Guantanamo and at least one ground artillery regiment ( attached to a mechanized infantry brigade ) , based in Las Tunas , are under the Eastern Army ' s command . 1996 Organization . There are estimated to be 38 , 000 army personnel . As of 1996 , according to Jane ' s Information Group , the army is organized into three Territorial Military Commands with three Armies , one army for each command . Revolutionary Army Command : Western Army ( deployed in the capital and the provinces of Havana and Pinar del Río ) 2nd ( Pinar del Río ) Army Corps : Central Army ( Provinces of Matanzas , Villa Clara , Cienfuegos and Sancti Spiritus ) 4th ( Las Villas ) Army Corps : Eastern Army ( Provinces of Santiago de Cuba , Guantánamo , Granma , Holguín , Las Tunas , Camagüey and Ciego de Avila ) 6th ( Holguín ) Army Corps : 6th ( Camagüey ) Army Corps : Special Forces . Special Forces units include the Black Wasps , and " Desembarco de Granma " , a special marine unit of the navy . The Ministry of Interior also has a special paramilitary unit . Cuban Revolutionary Air and Air Defense Force ( DAAFAR ) . The Cuban Revolutionary Air and Air Defense Force ( Spanish : " Defensa Anti - Aérea Y Fuerza Aérea Revolucionaria " ) commonly abbreviated to DAAFAR in both Spanish and English , is the air force of Cuba . Former aircraft include : MiG - 15 , MiG - 17 , MiG - 19 , North American B - 25 Mitchell , North American P - 51 Mustang , and the Hawker Sea Fury In the 1980s , Cuba with the help of the Soviet Union was able to project power abroad , using its air force , especially in Africa . During that time Cuba sent jet fighters and transports for deployment in conflict zones such as Angola and Ethiopia . In 1990 , Cuba ' s Air Force was the best equipped in Latin America . In all , the modern Cuban Air Force imported approximately 230 fixed - wing aircraft . Although there is no exact figure available , Western analysts estimate that at least 130 ( with only 25 operational ) of these planes are still in service spread out among the thirteen military airbases on the island . In 1996 , fighters from the DAAFAR shot down two Cessna aircraft based in Florida which were incorrectly suspected of dropping leaflets into Cuban airspace . The air force was criticised for not giving the pilots of the aircraft options other than being shot down . One aircraft escaped . In 1998 , according to the same DIA report mentioned above , the air force had ' fewer than 24 operational MIG fighters ; pilot training barely adequate to maintain proficiency ; a declining number of fighter sorties , surface to air missiles and air - defense artillery to respond to attacking air forces . By 2007 the International Institute for Strategic Studies assessed the force as 8 , 000 strong with 41 combat capable aircraft and a further 188 stored . DAAFAR is known now to have integrated another Mig - 29 and a few MiG - 23s which makes it 58 combat aircraft in active service which are listed as 6 MiG - 29 s , 40 MiG - 23 s , and 12 MiG - 21 s . There were also assessed to be 12 operational transport aircraft plus trainers which include 8 L - 39C and helicopters which are mainly Mil Mi - 8 , Mil Mi - 17 and Mil Mi - 24 Hind . Raúl Castro ordered in 2010 that all MiG - 29 pilots had to have full training , they now have from 200 – 250 hours of flight annually together with real dogfight training and exercises . Up to 20 MiG - 23 units also have this kind of training but the other 16 MiG - 23 units spend more time in simulators than real flight . MiG - 21 units have limited time in this exercises and spend more time in simulators and maintain their skills flying with the commercial brand of the air force Aerogaviota . At San Antonio de los Banos military air field , south west of Havana , several aircraft are visible using Google Earth . Cuban Revolutionary Navy ( Marina de Guerra Revolucionaria , MGR ) . In 1998 , according to a CIA report , the Cuban Navy had no functioning submarines , around 12 surface vessels that were combat ready , a ' weak ' anti - surface warfare capability , primarily SS - N - 2 Styx SSM equipped fast attack boats , and an ' extremely weak ' anti - submarine warfare capability . By 2007 , the Cuban Navy was assessed as being 3 , 000 strong ( including up to 550 + Navy Infantry ) by the IISS with six Osa - II and one Pauk class corvette . Almost all of the ships of the Cuban Navy have been decommissioned , and the three Koni class frigate s were either expended as targets or sunk to build reefs . Cuba has constructed rolling platforms with Soviet P - 15 Termit missile batteries taken from its warships and placed them near beaches where hostile amphibious assaults may occur . Most patrol boats are non - operational due to lack of fuel and spares . The Cuban Navy also includes a small marine battalion called the " Desembarco de Granma " . It once numbered 550 men though its present size is not known . There are reports of new naval projects under the [ Raúl Castro ] government . After the old Soviet submarines were put out of service , Cuba searched for help from North Korea ' s experience in midget submarines . North Korean defectors claimed to have seen Cubans in mid to late 1990s into a secret submarine base and appeared in public view years later a single picture of a small black native submarine in Havana harbour . It is rumored to be called ' Delfin ' and is to be armed with two torpedoes . Further analysis confirmed it to be a derived from the North Korean Yugo class submarine and up to 6 units are rumoured to be in service , even if 2 of them are used for civilian meteorologic studies . The Cuban Navy rebuilt one , large ex - Spanish fishing boat . The BPH - 390 Rio Damuji is now armed with 2 C - 201W missiles , 1 x 2 - 57mm guns , 2 x 2 - 25mm guns and 1 x14 . 5mm machine gun . This vessel is larger than the Koni class , and it is used as a helicopter carrier patrol vessel . A second unit ( n°392 ) is under construction at Cienfuegos and is expected to enter into service as a military ship also . The Cuban Navy today operates its own missile systems , the made - in - Cuba Bandera ( a copy of the dated Styx Soviet missiles ) and Remulgadas anti - ship missile systems . Air and Naval Air Bases . List of active bases : Fleet . Current . The border guards have : 2 Stenka class patrol boat s and 30 / 48 Zhuk patrol craft . Cuba makes Zhuk patrol craft and some are seen with an SPG - 9 mounted on front of the twin 30mm guns .