This article talks about the first year of Raul Castro's presidency. The article characterizes his time in office as effective, especially when considering the natural disasters and economic crisis that Cuba has dealt with. It also discusses the president's success on opening Cuba to the international community. It says that Raul has also renewed it's Cold War treaty with Russia. Many where unsure if communism would hold up in the country but it seems to be surviving.  

-Here's a link to Raul Castro's biography http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/americas/5234790.stm