Venezuela Military Strength 2026

How strong is Venezuela's military in 2026?

On paper Caracas shopped well in the 2000s and 2010s. From Russia it bought Su-30MK2 fighters, S-300VM and Buk-M2E air defences, T-72B1 tanks, BMP-3 fighting vehicles and up to an estimated 5,000 Igla-S shoulder launched missiles. Years of economic collapse have left much of it unserviceable.

Nobody knows exactly how many people serve. Silent Dossier estimates regular forces at 95,000 to 140,000. The Bolivarian militia probably has 200,000 to 350,000 trained members, far short of the 4.5 million the government claimed when it activated the militia in August 2025. The 2026 national budget, approved at about US$19.5 billion, does not show a defence line.

What happened on 3 January 2026?

US forces hit roughly 11 to 12 sites, including Fuerte Tiuna, La Carlota air base, Higuerote and La Guaira. The targets were air defence, radar and communications nodes, and a raid captured Maduro. Caracas and Havana said 55 Venezuelan and Cuban personnel were killed; a rights group has since identified 78 dead.

The defences barely worked. Core S-300VM and Buk-M2E elements were reportedly not connected to their radars, and some launchers sat in hangars and warehouses. At least four Buk-M2E launchers were reportedly destroyed, one of them at La Carlota, the S-300VM never fired, and Chinese JY-27 radars were reportedly damaged.

Does Venezuela still have working fighter jets?

Very few. Venezuela took delivery of 24 Su-30MK2s and has lost three, leaving 21 airframes. Only about 11 were flying in 2020, and nobody outside the air force knows how many fly after January. The old F-16A/B Block 15 fleet was down to an estimated three to five airworthy jets in 2025. Chinese K-8W trainers double as light attack aircraft, and a handful of Mi-35M2s are the only attack helicopters.

What is left of Venezuela's army and navy?

The army keeps the most usable power: 92 T-72B1 and 81 French AMX-30V tanks, 123 BMP-3s, 48 Msta-S self propelled howitzers and 12 BM-30 Smerch heavy rocket launchers. Locally assembled drones of Iranian design, including Mohajer types and the Zamora loitering munition, add a little strike capacity.

The navy is a coastal patrol force now. Of two surviving Lupo class frigates, Almirante Brión was in dry dock in 2026 and Mariscal Sucre has not been reliably seen at sea. Neither submarine is operational. Spanish built Guaiqueri class patrol vessels carry most of the load.

Who controls Venezuela's armed forces now?

After the raid the armed forces recognised Delcy Rodríguez as acting president, and regional commands were reshuffled on 21 January. Gen. Gustavo González López, a former intelligence chief, replaced Vladimir Padrino López as defence minister on 18 March. Relations with Washington thawed fast. The head of US Southern Command met Rodríguez in Caracas in February, the US embassy reopened in March, and in April Venezuela pledged border security cooperation with Colombia.

The armed forces are still big enough to keep order at home. They could not defend Venezuelan airspace in January, and nothing they own today would change that result.