Havana/The UAZ company has delivered the first batch of SUVs Patriot assembled in Cuba, as part of a bilateral agreement that contemplates the local assembly of vehicles through imported kits, announced on Facebook the Embassy of Russia in Havana. The project takes place at the plant of the Comprehensive Automotive Services (EISA) company and is part of the Russian impulse to industrial sectors of the island, which is going through a deep crisis.
The assembly officially began in April, during a visit by the Vice Primer Russian Minister Dmitri Chernyshenko, who participated in the launching ceremony of the first armed model in Cuba. According to the company, the capacity of the Ronda plant The 500 annual unitsalthough with additional shifts it could reach 1,500 vehicles. To the Patriot SUVs will be added soon the Pickup model, equally adapted to the road and climatic conditions of Cuba.
The Patriot UAZ is a vehicle designed to face extreme conditions of land and climate. Equipped with total traction, ZMZ Pro 2.7 liters gasoline and five -speed manual transmission, this model offers a useful load capacity of up to 525 kilograms and can tow up to 2,650 kilos. Its height allows you to overcome obstacles in unchanged roads, very common in Cuba.
The SUV has been valued in Russian media as a robust vehicle and has received criticism for its high fuel consumption
The SUV has been valued in Russian media as a robust vehicle, with simple mechanics and easy maintenance, although it has also received criticism for its high fuel consumption, a very negative characteristic on the island that faces serious problems with the Oil supply. In its most recent version, the car incorporates assisted direction, air conditioning and multimedia system, which make it adequate for rural or institutional environments, especially in countries with poor infrastructure.
This initiative marks a new step in the technical-industrial cooperation Between Havana and Moscow, although it is not the first experience. In 2018, Kits for assembly of 500 Ural Trucks and 120 Gaz cars were sent from Russia. That project, however, ended in the courts: the Ural Truck Plant, in Cheliábinsk, filed a lawsuit against the state -owned Cuban Tecnoimport and the International Bank of Commerce SA (BICSA) for a default valued at 23.4 million euros. The claim, which included damage and interest, also involved the Russian financial corporation Veb.RF, which acted as intermediary.
Despite Cuban complaints about alleged technical problems, images published in official media showed Ural trucks parading in military actswhich contradicts Havana’s arguments. The Russian plant had even trained Cuban technicians and produced audiovisual materials to support the assembly process.
In January 2023, two recent Ural-4320 trucks were exhibited by the Cuban army during the Liberty caravan, a symbolic reissue of Fidel Castro’s journey to Havana in January 1959. The units, gleaming and escorted by young people in uniform, headed the military column in several eastern municipalities. Behind the Chinese trucks Sinatch Howo also circulated, whose existence in the Cuban vehicle park had not been officially disclosed until that moment.
The Ural-4320 model is a 6×6 total traction vehicle with capacity for 5.5 tons, identical to the one that the Russian army uses in tactical operations in Ukraine. Together with previous models such as Ural-375 or ZIL-131, it is part of an aged military automotive park, maintained with great efforts for the chronic foul of spare parts.
The history of automotive links between Cuba and the former USSR dates back to the 70s and 80s, when thousands of Lada and Moskvitch vehicles were massively imported to the island
The history of automotive links between Cuba and the former USSR dates back to the 70s and 80s, when thousands of lada vehicles and Moskvitch They were massively imported to the island. The Lada, a symbol of status at the time, stood out for its durability and by the network of state workshops that kept it operational. The Moskvitch They also circulated in large quantities and still survive thanks to the creativity of Cuban mechanics.
The delivery of the new Russian vehicles is produced in a context marked by a sustained financial support from Kremlin to Havana. In 2014, Russia conded 90% of the Cuban debt inherited from the Soviet era, equivalent to $ 35,000 million. More recently, the payment of a loan for a non -built power plant was postponed until 2040. In 2022, the Russian Duma restructured other loans granted between 2006 and 2019 for a value of 2.3 billion dollars. Most of these credits were intended for projects in energy, transport and metallurgy.
According to the medium The Moscow TimesMoscow has resumed a Influence strategy Similar to Soviet, forgiving millionaire debts in exchange for political loyalty. Meanwhile, the real effectiveness of these agreements in the Cuban economy is still questioned. The delivery of the new UAZ, although it represents a visible gesture of cooperation, highlights the persistence of structural imbalances and doubts about the ability to pay the island.
