{"id":39112,"date":"2026-03-18T18:06:15","date_gmt":"2026-03-18T22:06:15","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/tvdelmarva.com\/wp\/venezuelas-acting-leader-replaces-defense-minister-in-cabinet-overhaul\/"},"modified":"2026-03-18T18:06:15","modified_gmt":"2026-03-18T22:06:15","slug":"venezuelas-acting-leader-replaces-defense-minister-in-cabinet-overhaul","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/tvdelmarva.com\/wp\/venezuelas-acting-leader-replaces-defense-minister-in-cabinet-overhaul\/","title":{"rendered":"Venezuela’s Acting Leader Replaces Defense Minister in Cabinet Overhaul"},"content":{"rendered":"\n
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CARACAS, Venezuela \u2014 In a significant government restructuring on Wednesday, Venezuela’s acting President Delcy Rodr\u00edguez replaced the nation’s defense minister, removing a key military figure who had been instrumental in supporting former President Nicol\u00e1s Maduro’s regime.<\/p>

Using her Telegram channel to make the announcement, Rodr\u00edguez revealed that Gen. Gustavo Gonz\u00e1lez L\u00f3pez would immediately take over the defense ministry position. The move removes Gen. Vladimir Padrino L\u00f3pez, who had been a crucial pillar of military backing for Maduro’s administration. In her statement, Rodr\u00edguez expressed gratitude to Padrino L\u00f3pez for his “loyalty to the Homeland” while voicing optimism about his future contributions.<\/p>

This cabinet reshuffle occurs more than ten weeks following Rodr\u00edguez’s assumption of leadership after U.S. military forces captured Maduro on January 3rd to face drug trafficking charges in American courts.<\/p>

The Trump administration has intensified its efforts to pressure remaining Maduro supporters who continue to control the petroleum-rich South American nation.<\/p>

The newly appointed Gonz\u00e1lez L\u00f3pez brings significant intelligence experience to his role, though he previously faced American sanctions due to his involvement in suppressing street demonstrations in 2014. Following Rodr\u00edguez’s security reorganization on January 6th, he has been leading both the presidential honor guard and the military’s intimidating counterintelligence division.<\/p>

Padrino L\u00f3pez had maintained his cabinet position as one of the most enduring ministers since Maduro assumed power in 2013, serving as defense minister continuously since his 2014 appointment, making him among Venezuela’s longest-tenured defense officials.<\/p>","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Venezuela’s acting President Delcy Rodr\u00edguez has appointed a new defense minister, removing Gen. Vladimir Padrino L\u00f3pez who was a key military supporter of former President Nicol\u00e1s Maduro. The change comes over ten weeks after Rodr\u00edguez took power following Maduro’s capture by U.S. forces in January.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":4,"featured_media":39111,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":"","jetpack_publicize_message":"","jetpack_publicize_feature_enabled":true,"jetpack_social_post_already_shared":true,"jetpack_social_options":{"image_generator_settings":{"template":"highway","default_image_id":0,"font":"","enabled":false},"version":2}},"categories":[832],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-39112","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-world-news"],"jetpack_publicize_connections":[],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/tvdelmarva.com\/wp\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/03\/news-1773871575282.jpg?fit=1000%2C666&ssl=1","jetpack_shortlink":"https:\/\/wp.me\/pbtNqq-aaQ","jetpack-related-posts":[{"id":39001,"url":"https:\/\/tvdelmarva.com\/wp\/venezuela-shakes-up-military-leadership-with-new-defense-minister\/","url_meta":{"origin":39112,"position":0},"title":"Venezuela Shakes Up Military Leadership with New Defense Minister","author":"Admin","date":"March 18, 2026","format":false,"excerpt":"Venezuela's acting President Delcy Rodriguez announced Wednesday that General Gustavo Gonzalez Lopez will take over as defense minister. 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