RFK Jr. first visited Cuba  in 1996 to discuss environmental issues as part of a delegation with the National Resources Defense Council. He returned to Cuba in 2014, and has since praised Cuba’s socialist health care system, claiming the country produces healthier citizens than the United States.

He’s also spoken fondly about time he and his children spent with Castro, calling the late strongman "incredibly charming," in a November 2023 interview.

"He was very, very kind to me and to my family and he had a very open, engaged mind and I talked to him about a million things," Kennedy said, noting that he "talked to [Castro] about the U.S. attempts to assassinate him."