According to Castro Ocando News, Venezuela’s regime allegedly held a secret meeting with Colombia’s narcotrafficking FARC and ELN leaders to act as private military type of force to protect Venezuela’s regime since they no longer trust their own military forces. Here is the YouTube link to his channel:
https://www.youtube.com/live/–LY1aEr6n8?si=qsSQTCvhgwwyle3S
Location
According to Castro Ocando, the meeting took place in a secret location in the town of El Nula in Apure. This area is considered a hot zone close to the Colombo-Venezuelan border; a hub for illicit activities, including drug trafficking, and the presence of Colombian guerrilla groups including the FARC and ELN.
Participants
The meeting was attended by the top leadership of the Maduro regime, including:
1. Nicolás Maduro – President of Venezuela
– Maduro has been the president of Venezuela since 2013, consolidating power through controversial elections and cracking down on political opposition. He is widely regarded as a dictator whose regime is plagued by human rights abuses, economic mismanagement, and corruption.
2. Diosdado Cabello – Vice President of the United Socialist Party of Venezuela (PSUV) and President of the National Constituent Assembly
– Cabello is considered the second-most powerful figure in the Maduro regime. As the head of the PSUV and the National Constituent Assembly, he has played a key role in undermining Venezuela’s democratic institutions and consolidating Maduro’s authoritarian control.
They were accompanied by two high-ranking officials from Maduro’s security apparatus:
3. Alexander Granko Arteaga – Head of the Directorate General of Military Counterintelligence (DGCIM)
– Granko Arteaga is known for overseeing the torture and repression of political prisoners, making him a notorious figure in the Maduro regime’s crackdown on dissent.
4. Iván Hernández Dala – Chief of the Directorate of Military Counterintelligence (DGCIM)
– Hernández Dala is the head of the DGCIM, the intelligence agency responsible for monitoring and suppressing any signs of discontent within the Venezuelan military.
These Venezuelan officials met with three prominent leaders of Colombian terrorist and narco-guerrilla groups:
1. Néstor Gregorio Vera Fernández, also known as “Iván Mordisco” – One of the main commanders of the FARC dissident group, leading the largest dissident faction called the Central High Command. He has a bounty on his head.
– Vera Fernández is a notorious figure who has been involved in numerous acts of violence, kidnappings, and drug trafficking as part of the FARC dissident group.
2 Alexander Díaz Mendoza, alias “Calarcá” – Responsible for numerous bomb attacks carried out by the Colombian narco-guerrilla. He has a bounty on his head.
– Díaz Mendoza is a senior member of the Colombian narco-guerrilla groups, with a long history of orchestrating deadly terrorist attacks.
3. Javier Alonso Velosa, known as “John Mechas” – Leader of the 33rd Front of the FARC dissidents, accused of organizing the assassination attempt on former Colombian President Iván Duque. He has the highest bounty of the three.
– Velosa, alias “John Mechas,” is one of the most wanted figures in Colombia for his involvement in high-profile acts of terrorism and his leadership role within the FARC dissident faction.
Duration
The meeting took place over two days, on Sunday September 22nd, and Monday September 23rd 2024, indicating the importance and complexity of the discussions.
Purpose
The main purpose of the meeting was to devise strategies to protect and defend the Maduro regime in the event of a massive military uprising, both from internal and external sources. Maduro and Cabello have expressed a deep distrust of the Venezuelan military, fearing that they may turn against the regime during a critical confrontation.
Key Discussions
1. Strategies to defend the regime in the event of a large-scale military uprising, both from within Venezuela and with potential external support.
2. The creation of a private “mercenary army” composed primarily of foreign soldiers, including Colombian FARC dissidents, ELN operatives, and Cuban mercenaries, to protect Maduro and Cabello.
3.Efforts to increase pressure and force the exile of prominent opposition figures like María Corina Machado, similar to the case of the elected president Edmundo González Urrutia.
4. Concerns about the diminishing chances of receiving crucial external support from allies like Russia and Iran, who are preoccupied with their own conflicts.
Funding for the Mercenary Army
The money to pay for this operation and the formation of this private mercenary army will come from the illicit proceeds of the Maduro regime’s criminal activities, including the Cartel de los Soles (Cartel of the Suns), oil sales, and illegal gold mining.
The reason Nicolás Maduro and Diosdado Cabello are putting this private mercenary force in place is because they do not trust the Venezuelan military armed forces in the event of an attack, whether it comes from internal or external sources. They fear that the military may turn against the regime during a critical confrontation, which has led them to seek the support of foreign mercenaries and Colombian guerrilla groups to bolster their defenses.
Conclusion
It is hard to discern any truth or verifiable information regarding the information provided by an unknown “intelligence source.” This secret meeting highlights the Maduro regime’s desperation to cling to power, even if it means aligning with some of the most notorious terrorist and criminal organizations in the region. The implications of this alliance are deeply concerning, as it threatens not only the stability of Venezuela but also the broader regional security landscape. The Maduro regime’s willingness to resort to such extreme measures, financed by illicit revenue streams, underscores the lengths they are willing to go to maintain their grip on power, regardless of the consequences for the Venezuelan people and the region as a whole. The active participation by FARC and ELN members is not completely impossible but this type of activity will likely disrupt and elevate international interest to the narcotrafficking cartels in Colombia and Venezuela main purpose of making money. The Venezuelan regime did make their concerns public regarding some military members which did not exhibited complete loyalty and commitment to the regime following the July’s presidential elections.