Honduras crisis may spur Latin America coups - Fidel Castro

Castro, in a column published late on Friday on an Internet site run by Cuba's communist government, said right-wing military leaders trained by the United States could be encouraged to take up arms against their governments, depending on how the Honduras crisis turned out.

"If President Manuel Zelaya is not returned to his post, a wave of coups threatens to sweep many Latin American governments, or they will be left at the mercy of military men of the extreme right, educated in the security doctrine of the School of the Americas," he wrote.

Castro was referring to a since-renamed U.S. military school where thousands of Latin American soldiers and officers have been trained since the early days of the Cold War.

Zelaya, Castro wrote, has insisted on returning to power because he believes "the right of the people of Latin America to elect their leaders" is at stake.