Venezuelan Interim Leader Reshuffles Military High Command After Defence Ministry Overhaul
Delcy Rodríguez has carried out a major shake-up of Venezuela’s military leadership, replacing several senior commanders just a day after appointing a new defence minister in a move seen as part of a broader effort to consolidate control over the armed forces.
Announcing the changes on Thursday, Rodríguez said the new appointments were aimed at safeguarding the country’s sovereignty, peace, institutional stability, and territorial integrity amid an evolving political transition.
The military restructuring comes weeks after the dramatic capture of former president Nicolás Maduro during a United States operation in early January, an event that triggered sweeping political changes in Caracas and intensified efforts by the interim administration to rebuild confidence within state institutions.
Since assuming interim leadership, Rodríguez has gradually distanced her administration from key elements of Maduro’s former power structure while also reopening diplomatic engagement with United States, with both countries restoring formal diplomatic ties earlier this month.
Among the new appointments, Rodríguez named Dilio Alejandro Agüero Montes as navy commander, Royman Antonio Hernández Briceño as air force commander, and Rubén Darío Belzares Escobar as army commander. Additional changes were also made across other strategic branches of the armed forces as part of a wider command reorganisation.
The latest appointments follow Wednesday’s cabinet reshuffle, in which Rodríguez removed long-serving defence minister Vladimir Padrino López after more than a decade in office and replaced him with Gustavo González López, a former intelligence chief and one of the country’s most influential security figures.
In a message posted on Telegram, Rodríguez thanked Padrino for his years of service and what she described as his loyalty to the nation, while formally announcing González López as the new defence minister.
The appointment, however, drew immediate criticism from human rights groups, with Provea describing the move as “a recycling of impunity,” citing González López’s previous leadership roles in intelligence agencies accused of repression under the former administration.
Padrino, who served as defence minister for nearly 12 years and remained one of Maduro’s most visible military allies, said it had been the highest honour of his life to serve Venezuela and help preserve national unity during a turbulent period.
He also congratulated González López, noting their long professional relationship and expressing confidence that the armed forces would remain institutionally strong under the new leadership.
Before his latest appointment, González López had twice headed Venezuela’s intelligence service, SEBIN, serving between 2014 and 2018, and again from 2019 to 2024 — periods that drew international scrutiny over allegations of human rights abuses and political repression.
The reshuffle is widely seen as one of the most significant military realignments since Rodríguez assumed interim authority, underscoring the strategic importance of military loyalty in Venezuela’s ongoing political transition.
