Venezuela has announced what it calls a “massive mobilization” of its military forces, weapons, and equipment in reaction to the growing presence of United States warships and troops in the Caribbean Sea.
Defense Minister Vladimir Padrino López said the nationwide operation, spanning land, air, and naval forces, as well as reserves, will continue through Wednesday. He described it as a countermeasure to what he termed the “imperialist threat” from the US buildup.
The drills will include regular military personnel alongside the Bolivarian Militia, a civilian reserve force established by the late President Hugo Chávez and named after independence hero Simón Bolívar.
According to Padrino López, who said the directive came directly from President Nicolás Maduro, the exercises are intended to “optimize command, control and communications” and to strengthen the country’s defense readiness.
The mobilization comes as tensions between Caracas and Washington continue to escalate.
On Tuesday, the US Navy revealed that its largest aircraft carrier, the USS Gerald R. Ford, had entered the US Southern Command area of operations—which covers most of Latin America.
US Defense Secretary, Pete Hegseth, reportedly ordered the carrier’s transfer from Europe to the Caribbean late last month.
The Ford strike group includes nine air squadrons, two Arleigh Burke-class guided missile destroyers, the USS Bainbridge and USS Mahan, the command ship USS Winston S. Churchill, and over 4,000 sailors.
While Washington has maintained that its increased presence in the region is aimed at curbing drug trafficking and preventing narcotics from reaching the US, Venezuelan officials believe the buildup is part of a broader effort to topple Maduro’s government. Some officials from the Trump administration have privately acknowledged that regime change is indeed the goal.
Last month, former President Donald Trump said he had given the CIA permission to operate in Venezuela and even hinted at possible military strikes, though later statements from US officials suggested that no such plans were currently in motion.
Padrino López said Tuesday that Venezuela’s deployment forms part of Maduro’s broader “Independence Plan 200,” a civil-military initiative designed to combine the efforts of the armed forces, militias, and police to defend the nation.
Venezuela’s regular military, the Bolivarian National Armed Forces, comprises about 123,000 personnel.
Maduro has claimed that an additional 8 million volunteers have joined the country’s militia reserves, though analysts have questioned both the figures and the level of training among those forces.
With the Gerald R. Ford now in the region, estimates suggest around 15,000 US military personnel are currently stationed throughout the Caribbean.
Before the Ford’s arrival, a large portion of US naval forces was already deployed nearby, including the Iwo Jima Amphibious Ready Group and the 22nd Marine Expeditionary Unit, together totaling more than 4,500 Marines and sailors.
The deployment also includes three guided-missile destroyers, an attack submarine, a special operations vessel, a guided missile cruiser, and P-8 Poseidon reconnaissance aircraft.
In addition, the US has positioned 10 F-35 fighter jets and at least three MQ-9 Reaper drones in Puerto Rico, which now serves as a key hub for US operations in the Caribbean.
Approximately 5,000 US troops are believed to be stationed on the island.
American bombers have also conducted several training flights near Venezuela’s coast, including what the Pentagon described as a bomber “attack demonstration” in late October.
