Venezuelan Defense Minister Vladimir Padrino announced on Nov. 11 that in the dawn hours of that day, two days of nationwide military exercises had begun, involving 200,000 military personnel—plus militias. The aim was to test the nation’s “full operational readiness,” in case of “imperial” attack. “The massive deployment of land, air, naval, river, and missile assets; weapons systems; military units; the Bolivarian Militia; Citizen Security Bodies, and the Commands for Integral Defense” were activated, with the emphasis on coordination between them, Venezuela’s Telesur reported.
Telesur’s report makes clear that the Venezuelan government is preparing to defend itself with the methods of both irregular, as well as regular warfare, should it be invaded, organized around the principle that “every citizen has a mission in the defense of the homeland.”
