Havana  - US President Barack Obama's policies on Cuba are only focused on Cuban-Americans, at the expense of residents of the island nation, ailing Cuban leader Fidel Castro said Friday.

In an article criticizing Obama, Castro said that "sooner rather than later, Obama's politics are losing their virginity."

"The almost 12 million Cubans inhabiting the island do not interest him," he said.

This was Castro's third article in two weeks that criticized Obama. During the US election campaign, the former Cuban president had expressed support for Obama and said he was superior to his Republican rival John McCain "in intelligence and serenity."

In January, Castro said Obama was "honest" and had "nobel intentions." But he appears to have changed his mind.

In Friday's article, Castro quoted White House Chief of Staff Rahm Emanuel as saying that "the least said on Cuba, the better."

"He (Emanuel) told journalists that what interests President Obama is the Cuban-American community," Castro said, adding that "Cubans qualified to do so had voted 3 to 1 for the Democratic candidate in Florida."

Castro, 82, formally gave up power to his brother Raul almost a year ago and has not been seen in public since July 2006. He is apparently recovering from an unspecified illness, but has kept active by writing articles for official Cuban media. (dpa)