Cast adrift.

The Soviet Union was famous for its foreign adventures. It funded many rogUe regimes around the world so long as they were enemies of the United States. The U.S. did the same; propping up several corrupt and brutal dictators who were hostile to communism. This global competition cost millions of lives over the span of the Cold War. But, when the Soviet Union folded, the pipeline that funnelled money and weapons into its client states was shut down. Communist governments and guerrilla armies disappeared along with Moscow's money in many parts of the globe. But, one communist regime that has clung on is that of Cuba. In 1989, Cuba was receiving annual subsidies of $5 billion. When Moscow stopped sending the support payments, Cuba's economy shrank by a third in four years. Food was hard to get and living conditions became very harsh for most Cubans. Faced with the possibility of widespread starvation, the country's long-time dictator, Fidel Castro, bent his communist ideology. Foreign investment has been encouraged and a mixed economy is developing. Food is back on store shelves and a modest recovery seems to be underway.