Fidel Castro admits Cuban Missile Crisis 'wasn't worth it at all'

Former Cuban leader Fidel Castro has admitted that he now believes all the efforts to arm Russia with nuclear weapons in the Cold War weren't 'worth it at all'.

In a candid interview with an American journalist - one of the first since the 84-year-old placed himself back in the public eye after falling ill four years ago - Castro claims his attitudes have been diluted.

One of the primary leaders of the Cuban Revolution, Castro stepped down as President in 2008 ceding power to his brother, Raul, as he was in poor health.

Speaking to Jeffrey Goldberg, a reporter for The Atlantic, Castro lifted the lid on his current political views - even questioning his own actions in the Cuban Missile Crisis of 1962.

Former Cuban leader Fidel Castro, speaking on Friday, warned of nuclear war in his first speech before the Cuban public since falling ill in 2006

He also criticised Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad for his anti-Semitic views and urged him to back down from his pro-nuclear stance.

Goldberg was on holiday last month when an official from Cuba called to say Castro had read his recent article about Israel and Iran and wanted him to come to Cuba.

Goldberg asked Julia Sweig, a Cuba-U.S. policy expert at the Council on Foreign Relations, to accompany him, and the pair spent portions of three days talking with Castro.

Goldberg said their first meeting lasted five hours and featured appearances by Castro's wife, Dalia, his son Antonio, and several bodyguards, two of which held his elbow to steady Castro when he moved.

'His body may be frail, but his mind is acute, his energy level is high,' wrote Goldberg, who also noted Castro's self-deprecating humour.

The ex-President wore full military fatigues and an olive-green cap while addressing university students last week - his first public address in four years.

Golberg said Castro, who himself has been a fierce critic of Israel, 'repeatedly returned to his excoriation of anti-Semitism,' chiding Ahmadinejad for denying the Holocaust.

Castro said that Iran could further the cause of peace by 'acknowledging the "unique" history of anti-Semitism and trying to understand why Israelis fear for their existence.'

The grey-bearded revolutionary related to Goldberg a story from his childhood that has been detailed by some biographers: that he overheard classmates saying Jews killed Jesus Christ.

'I didn't know what a Jew was. I knew of a bird that was a called a 'Jew,' and so for me the Jews were those birds,' Goldberg quoted Castro as telling him.

Castro later added, 'This is how ignorant the entire population was.'

According to Goldberg, Castro said, 'I don't think anyone has been slandered more than the Jews. I would say much more than the Muslims.'
Castro also said that the Iranian government should understand that the Jews 'were expelled from their land, persecuted and mistreated all over the world, as the ones who killed God'.

After undergoing emergency intestinal surgery in July 2006, giving up Cuba's presidency and dropping out of sight for four years, Castro has begun making near-daily public appearances to warn of a nuclear war pitting the U.S. and Israel against Iran and also featuring a Washington-led attack on North Korea.

'This problem is not going to get resolved, because the Iranians are not going to back down in the face of threats,' Castro told Goldberg.

Goldberg also said he revisited the Cuban Missile Crisis with Castro, asking if once 'it seemed logical for you to recommend that the Soviets bomb the U.S.'

'Does what you recommended still seem logical now?'

Castro's answer surprised him: 'After I've seen what I've seen, and knowing what I know now, it wasn't worth it all.'

Explosive situation: An image from the 2001 film Thirteen Days starring Kevin Costner

Bay of Pigs: America invaded Cuba in 1961 and here a Cuban airliner is pictured ablaze after being hit by rocket fire

On November 12, 1962, the U.S. destroyer Vesole steamed alongside Soviet freighter Polzunov to inspect her cargo. On the deck of the Soviet vessel were large oblong missile-like objects. After a discussion, the Vesole pulled away

Adlai Stevenson, U.S. ambassador to the UN, at a UN Security Council session on Cuba, asked the Soviet representative if his country was installing missiles in Cuba, then demanded 'Don't wait for the translation, answer yes or no!'

Tense times: President Kennedy meets with advisers in October 1962 as the Cuban Missile Crisis unfolded

Leader: Castro was pivotal in the Cuban revolution and was President from 1976 to 2008 before stepping down because of ill health