Like no other country in the region, Cuba influences the development of all of Latin America. Its alternative social model serves as a role model for many countries in the Global South and is generally proof that another world is possible. This was made possible by the victory of the revolution over the dictatorship of Fulgencio Batista on January 1, 1959. Since then, his supporters, who fled to Miami, have been unsuccessfully trying to force a regime change on the socialist Caribbean island with the support of Washington. As terrorist and other subversive methods have also failed to achieve their goals, U.S. President Obama was compelled to adjust his course. Starting with the revolution and its roots, Volker Hermsdorf provides an overview of the country's history, up to its current problems and its significance for the model of a multipolar world.