"As soldiers, they are happy with a man who they know extremely well after 49 years, a man who chose many of them for top command positions and has taken care of them," said Cuba military expert Hal Klepak, of the Royal Military College of Canada.
Raul Castro is said to be quick with a joke and kind to those he works with, but he has a well-known tough side, overseeing the execution of political opponents following the revolution.
The younger Castro embraced communism before his older brother did, but under his guidance the armed forces played a key role in small, free-market reforms that bolstered the economy since the Soviet Union's breakup cost Cuba its chief economic benefactor. Top officers now operate major tourism, retail and export companies, even produce basic foodstuffs.
Since taking power provisionally, Raul has raised expectations that small economic reforms could be coming, calling for unspecified "structural changes" in the communist system and encouraging Cubans to only debate the country's economic future.
Latell suggested that Raul could face growing dissent if he does not promote some economic openings. But the Cuban economy is no longer the shambles it was after the Soviet Union's collapse.
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