VICINITY MATTERS: CUBA'S REFORMS IN COMPARATIVE PERSPECTIVE.

After five years from the adoption of the Lineamientos, the Cuban model is going through its most profound transformation since the triumph of the Revolution. It is common in the literature to find comparisons using China and Vietnam as benchmarks for obvious reasons. This article tries to summarise the impact of US sanction in the conformation of the Cuban model, analyses the usefulness of the Asian experience and puts the current reform in the context of the restoration of ties with the United States. It concludes that the structural factors behind this unique model are now altered in many important ways and will be more so in the near future. Big implications are expected as a result. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]