Caracas, Venezuela. – The streets of the Venezuelan capital awoke this Saturday under a strong military presence, after the Nicolás Maduro regime deployed a caravan of tanks and motorcyclists from Fuerte Tiuna to El Valle, as part of a national training operation in armed defense.
The mobilization, led by the Bolivarian National Armed Forces (FANB), is part of a strategy that seeks to instruct the civilian population in defense tactics against what the ruling party considers an external threat, specifically due to the presence of US naval forces in the Caribbean Sea. The Maduro government accuses the United States of executing an “undeclared war” in the region.
About 25 armored vehicles, escorted by dozens of military motorcyclists, toured several Caracas highways in a show of force broadcast live by Venezolana de Televisión (VTV), as a symbol of the beginning of a new phase of the national defense plan.
From a square in El Valle, the Minister of Defense, Vladimir Padrino López, described the day as a “milestone” in the consolidation of the revolutionary military doctrine.
“Our FANB is active in more than 5,000 communal circuits, strengthening the popular militia units throughout the country,” he assured.
The armed instruction is not limited to Caracas. According to official reports, FANB troops are also deployed in communities in the states of Miranda, Zulia, Apure, Bolívar, Amazonas, among others, in order to train citizens in the handling of weapons.
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Diosdado Cabello, Minister of the Interior and number two of Chavismo, made a public call to the entire population, regardless of their political ideology, to join the training. “Here the important thing is that they love the homeland and are willing to defend it,” he affirmed from the Petare neighborhood, where he also participated in a simulation with firearms.
The regime maintains that the actions of the United States seek to promote a “regime change” in the country, although President Donald Trump has publicly denied any intention of direct intervention.
The military deployment concluded with new training sessions in various regions of the country, under the argument of defense against alleged foreign aggressions, while international concern grows over the increasing militarization of Venezuela and the use of civilians in armed tasks.
