The interim president of Venezuela, Delcy Rodríguez, dismissed Vladimir Padrino López this Wednesday after more than a decade as the country's Minister of Defense, and appointed General Gustavo González López in his place. This move comes two months after the capture of President Nicolás Maduro during a U.S. military attack in Caracas.
"We thank General Vladimir Padrino López for his dedication, his loyalty to the Fatherland, and for having been, for all these years, the first soldier in the defense of our country," the interim head of state expressed in a message published on Telegram. She also stated that the now-former minister will assume "new responsibilities that will be entrusted to him," without providing further details.
Padrino López held this cabinet position since October 24, 2014, having been appointed after a wave of massive anti-government protests that marked the beginning of Nicolás Maduro's first presidential term.
The new Minister of Defense, Gustavo González López, has served as the General Commander of the Presidential Honor Guard since January 6, when he was appointed by Rodríguez. On the same date, he was also appointed head of the Military Counterintelligence Directorate (DGCIM).
González López has also been the director of the Bolivarian National Intelligence Service (Sebin) between 2014 and 2018, and again between 2019 and 2024. Among other positions, he has also been Minister of Interior and Justice and General Commander of the Bolivarian National Militia.
Padrino López's dismissal comes two and a half months after the U.S. military attack in Caracas and three other states of the country, which culminated in the capture of Maduro and his wife, Deputy Cilia Flores, who are currently imprisoned in the United States.
Since being sworn in as interim president on January 5, Rodríguez has made changes to the cabinet, including the appointment of Paula Henao as Minister of Hydrocarbons, and of Luis Villegas to head the Ministry of Industry and National Trade, replacing the Colombian businessman Alex Saab, who was imprisoned in the United States and was close to Nicolás Maduro.
The interim head of state has begun a process of rapprochement with the Donald Trump administration—to whom she has referred to as a "partner and friend"—and has received several high-ranking U.S. officials in the Venezuelan capital, such as the Secretaries of Energy and the Interior, Chris Wright and Doug Burgum, respectively.
