FACTBOX: Raul Castro, Cuba's new leader

(Reuters) - Cuba's new leader Raul Castro was ratified as president on Sunday, succeeding his more famous and ailing brother Fidel Castro, who has not appeared in public for 19 months.

Here are some facts about Raul Castro:

* Raul Castro, 76, is the world's longest-serving defense minister, commanding the Cuban armed forces since the 1959 revolution led by his brother.

* The younger Castro has been his brother's trusted right-hand man since their 1953 assault on the Moncada army barracks and guerrilla insurgency in the Sierra Maestra mountains.

* Under his leadership, Cuba's Revolutionary Armed Forces became one of the most formidable fighting forces in the Third World with combat experience in Africa, where they defeated South Africa's army in Angola in 1987.

* Known as a good administrator, Raul Castro downsized the army from 300,000 to 60,000 troops after the collapse of Soviet Communism threw Cuba into severe economic crisis. He introduced Western business practices to help make the armed forces self-sufficient. The military has a large stake in the most dynamic sectors of the Cuban economy, including tourism.

* Raul Castro became acting president on July 31, 2006, when his brother delegated power after emergency intestinal surgery for an undisclosed illness. Fidel Castro has not appeared in public since and he announced his retirement last Tuesday.

* A low-key figure without the oratorical flair of his brother, Raul Castro has held the post of second secretary of Cuba's ruling Communist Party since it was founded in 1965.

* His daughter Mariela Castro is a sexologist who has defended the rights of transsexuals and is pushing legislation to allow gay marriage in Cuba.

(Reporting by Anthony Boadle in Havana, Editing by Michael Christie and Kieran Murray)