The Cartel of the Suns is a designated terrorist organization.
The Venezuelan regime’s Defense Minister, Vladimir Padrino López, held a closed-door meeting with high-ranking military officials where he ordered the B-type barracks of the Bolivarian National Armed Forces (FANB), a measure that requires 50% of personnel to physically remain in their units until further notice, amid what he called a scenario of “hybrid warfare” following the events of January 3.
During the meeting, Padrino López claimed that Venezuela was subject to a “algorithmic precision operation”, where technologies based on artificial intelligence were supposedly used to identify targets and make real-time decisions. In his view, these events necessitate a rewrite of the Venezuelan military doctrine, adapted to a new type of confrontation he described as cognitive and hybrid warfare.
“January 3 was not an isolated event; it marks the beginning of another phase,” the minister warned, asserting that the FANB is “not defeated” and, on the contrary, “remains standing” against a power with technological superiority. He acknowledged, however, that the country is experiencing a state of shock, although he assured that institutions have “faced the country.”
Padrino López reiterated his support for Delcy Rodríguez as acting president, emphasizing that the FANB maintains a “civic” and disciplined conduct in the current political context. In this framework, he claimed that the interim government aims for the return of Nicolás Maduro and Cilia Flores, while — according to him — making progress in a normalization process with the resumption of classes and commercial activities.
The minister also announced the initiation of internal investigations into weapons lost during the events of January 3, ordering “maximum control” over military material. At the same time, he warned of a psychological offensive aimed at the military, which would include phone calls from abroad to their personal devices. He stated that he had instructed the blocking of those communications and immediate notification to the chain of command.
In a stern tone, Padrino López rejected what he termed “intriguers and servile individuals” within the military ranks, referencing a phrase attributed to Simón Bolívar: “An intriguer does more damage than a hundred declared enemies.” He insisted that military personnel must maintain an “optimistic” rather than “defeatist” attitude, even while acknowledging that the FANB is currently in a defensive phase and tactical withdrawal.
Finally, he announced plans to reform and strengthen the militias and combat units, calling on them not to be influenced by “talkers,” whom he described as “the most cowardly.”
The message conveyed to ranks and subordinates reflects an effort to control the internal narrative within the FANB, in a moment of high political and military vulnerability, raising questions about the use of war rhetoric to reinforce discipline and loyalty in a context of unprecedented internal fractures and external pressure.