Military of Venezuela

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Military of Venezuela
Service branches	Army Navy Air Force Venezuelan National Guard National Reserve
Manpower
Military age	18
Available for military service	6,236,012, age 15–49 (2005 est.)
Fit for military service	4,907,947, age 15–49  (2005 est.)
Reaching military age annually	252,396 (2005 est.)
Active personnel	600,000
Expenditures
Budget	$7,7 billion (FY04)
Percent of GDP	2.5% (FY04)

As of 2008^[update], the National Armed Forces of Venezuela (FAN, Spanish: Fuerza Armada Nacional) is roughly made up of 600,000 soldiers in four service branches--the Army, Navy (including the Marine Corps), Air Force, and the Armed Forces of Cooperation (FAC), commonly known as the National Guard.

Contents 1 Organization 1.1 Branches 1.2 Venezuelan Military Ranks 2 Modernization 2.1 2005-2006 2.2 2007-2008 2.3 Controversy with the United States 2.3.1 U.S. military embargo 3 References 4 External links

[edit] Organization

As of 2008, about 83.000 soldiers were integrated in the military through a fifth service branch, the Armed Reserve, although some of this force is more of a militia than a formal, professional armed corps.^{[citation needed]}.

In 2006 the FAN was transformed into six service branches, the Army, Navy, Air Force, National Guard, National Reserve and the Territorial Guard. The Army, Navy, Air Force and National Guard will serve under the Strategic Operational Command (Comando Estratégico Operacional), the National Reserve and the Territorial Guard will serve under the National Reserve and Mobilization Command (Comando General de la Reserva Nacional y Movilizacion Nacional)

"Forjador de Libertades" or "Forger of Freedoms". This refers to Venezuelan armies fighting Venezuela's independence war, as well as the independence wars of five other countries, namely Colombia, Ecuador, Perú, Panamá (then part of New Granada, present day Colombia) and Bolivia.

[edit] Branches

National Armed Forces (Fuerzas Armada Nacional or FAN) includes:

• Army (Fuerzas Terrestres or Ejercito)
• Naval Forces (Fuerzas Navales or Armada)
  • Marine Infantry (Infanteria Marina)
• Venezuela Air Force (Fuerzas Aereas or Aviacion)
• Armed Forces of Cooperation or National Guard (Fuerzas Armadas de Cooperacion or Guardia Nacional)
• National Reserve (Reserva Nacional)
• Territorial Guard (Guardia Nacional)

[edit] Venezuelan Military Ranks

The army's officer rank system is unremarkable, but the system of non-commissioned ranks is notably complicated, with eighteen non-commissioned ranks from Distinguido to Maestro Técnico Supervisor. (For comparison, there are seven NATO non-commissioned ranks (OR-3 to OR-9) and six British non-commissioned army ranks.)

[edit] Modernization

The Venezuelan government has embarked on a massive military modernization and purchases that greatly expand their defensive and offensive capabilities, including negotiations for German submarines and transport aircraft, several agreements with Russia (outlined below), transport aircraft and naval vessels from Spain, radars from China, home-made and designed armored light vehicles and rocket launchers, studies for Leopard 2 main battle tanks, amongst many others. Most if not all European military hardware have not been delivered to Venezuela due to the U.S. embargo.

[edit] 2005-2006

In 2005 Venezuela signed agreements with Spain to procure 12 naval transport and reconnaissance aircraft and eight naval patrol vessels. The deal is worth $1.5-2 billion dollars to the Spanish defense industry, as well as an estimated 900 new jobs, but was cancelled due to the U.S. embargo. The cancellation does not affect the eight naval patrol vessels.

Venezuela in 2006 purchased 100,000 AK-103 assault rifles and 53 Russian helicopters^[1], including 12 Mi-17 military helicopters.^[2] The government of Venezuela has also announced its intention to obtain about 3 dozen more Russian helicopters, including Mi-17 "Hip", Mi-26 "Halo" and Mi-35 "Hind" as well as announcing the procurement of 24 Su-30MK Interceptors.^[3]

Venezuela has announced the purchase of 3 batteries of the TOR-M1 system, with the possible acquisition of 600 armored vehicles - possibly the BMP 3 or the Sabiex Iguana FV4.^[4] Border defense systems are being purchased from Brazil, plus Steyr anti-riot trucks and expanded Tiuna purchases.

A co-operative research into UAV between Venezuela and Iran is also underway.^[5]

[edit] 2007-2008

• In 2007, the Belarussian military optics industry supplied the Venezuelan army with night vision devices, and installed on, as Hugo Chavez described, "every single rifle in the Venezuelan army."^[6]

• In August, 2007, Chavez announced the purchase of 5,000 Dragunov sniper rifles from the Russian Rosoboronexport, adding that Venezuela must ready itself for a "possible U.S. invasion."^[7]. Venezuela is studying Antonov transport aircraft to revamp its aging fleet of transport craft, which includes IAI Aravas and Skytrucks. In June 2008, during a trip to Russia, Hugo Chavez signed a weapons deal for 10-22 Il-76 Candid heavy transports, an additional 10 Mi-28 attack helicopters, and 3 Kilo classsubmarines.^[8] Additional equipment may be included later on. There are talks between Russia and Venezuela for possible future purchases of Su-35 fighters.^[9] In all, between 2005 and 2007 Venezuela purchased more than $4.4 billion worth of arms from Russia.^[10]

• In September 2008, Russia provided Venezuela with a $1 billion loan to buy Russian weapons. A Kremlin source said "The Russian side has made the decision to extend to Venezuela a $1 billion loan for a military cooperation program." ahead of a meeting between Russian President Dmitry Medvedev and his Venezuelan counterpart, Hugo Chavez, which started a two-day visit to Russia.^[11] Venezuela used most of the $1 billion loan, granted by Russia, to buy air-defense systems, a Russian military analyst said. "Venezuela needs primarily Tor-M1 surface to air systems to protect the airfields where the 24 Su-30 MK2 jet fighters it bought from Russia are based," said Konstantin Makiyenko, deputy director of the Center for Strategic Analysis, a Moscow based think tank. Caracas bought Igla-S portable SAM systems, and wanted Il-78 aerial tankers and Il-76 military freight aircraft. The tankers and freight planes for the Venezuelan Air Force will cost around $300 million, Makiyenko said.^[12] In addition to the air defence systems, The Venezuelan government officially purchased Il-78 aerial tankers and Il-76 military freight aircraft.^[13]

• In late September, as part of a six-country tour, Chavez arrived in China to discuss investment deals. He later confirmed that Venezuela will purchase Advanced Trainers from that country.^[14]

• On October 15, Russia and Venezuela finalized a deal for a large number of BMP-3 infantry fighting vehicles, a senior executive at Russia's arms export monopoly said. "In addition to the small arms, light weapons and ammunition delivered earlier, a large shipment of BMP-3 infantry fighting vehicles is to be delivered," said Igor Sevastyanov, deputy general director of Rosoboronexport. ^[15]

• On October 17, 2008, it was confirmed that Venezuela and Russia were in talks to purchase the T-90 Russian tank, along with Multiple-Rocket Launchers. "We could be talking about 100 to 500 tanks. Right now it's impossible to know ... because strategic research studies are still underway (and) we're still negotiating," Venezuelan Strategic Operations Command chief General Jesus Gonzalez.^[16][17]

[edit] Controversy with the United States

These acquisitions and other projects have been greeted with criticism from the United States, which opposes the government of President Hugo Chávez. The U.S. accuses Venezuela of starting an arms race, which they claim will destabilize the military equilibrium in South America. Venezuela is also accused of supplying small arms to neighboring Colombian guerrilla organizations including FARC, which is sympathetic to Chávez.^[18][19]

United States criticism is met with skepticism by Venezuelan authorities, who claim the weapons are needed to update the basic equipment in the armed forces. In some cases, Venezuelan armaments like the FN FAL have been in service more than 50 years. The government also claims that the U.S. has been the one to initiate arms races and de-stabilize countries by supplying subversive groups in Latin America throughout the past century (referring to the Cold War and the contra affair, among numerous other incidents).

In the 1990s Venezuela requested a batch of F-16C/Ds to update its F-16 fighter fleet, but the U.S. government blocked the request.^[20] In October 1997 the U.S. government approved the sale of the two crash replacement F-16s, but subsequently halted the sale.^[21] In 2005 a contract with Israel Aircraft Industries to upgrade Venezuela's F-16s was frozen following U.S. pressure.^[22] Chavez subsequently accused the U.S. of delaying the sale of spare parts to maintain Venezuela’s F-16s. After remarks by Chavez that he would sell or lend the 'unused' F-16's to any country that wanted them, including Iran, the U.S. Government agreed to supply the spare parts; however, the shipment was detained at the Customs Office in Maiquetia International Airport due to security concerns.^[23][24]

Russia has agreed to sell more than $4 billion (£2 billion) worth of armaments to Venezuela since 2005 and disclosed that Mr Chávez wanted new antiaircraft systems and more fighter jets.^[25]

[edit] U.S. military embargo

The government of the United States announced an embargo of military material and equipments to Venezuela; no United States made weapons or technology can be sold to Venezuela by any country or company.^[26] This embargo has harmed several Venezuelan purchases, as not only are U.S. technology goods unavailable, but other nations friendly to the U.S. have been pressured to block sales of arms to Venezuela, as well. This is also considered one of the reasons Venezuela has turned to Russia and China for arms, in a move reminiscent of the Cold War. Below is a list of acquisitions frustrated directly or indirectly by the U.S. embargo:^[27]

• Aero L-159 Alca Jets from the Czech Republic: the Czech government forbade Aero Vodochody, the manufacturer, from creating a variant with French avionics and Ukrainian engines, specially requested by Venezuela.
• Saab AB, a Swedish arms company announced it would honor the U.S. embargo, and would not sell arms to Venezuela. Carl Gustav recoilless rifles, AT4 AT weapons, as well as RBS-70 AA systems are in service in the Venezuelan military.
• Spanish company EADS CASA halted the sale of several transport planes that contained extensive U.S. technology.
• Brazil was forced to cancel the sale of Embraer Super Tucano airplanes to the Venezuelan Air Force due to its use of Pratt & Whitney engines. Embraer was also forced to cancel the sale of AEW&C equipped planes.
• France decided to block the sale of Scorpene submarines to Venezuela.
• Russian companies Rosoboronexport and Sukhoi have been sanctioned by the U.S. government for procuring arms for Venezuela.

[edit] References

• http://www.globalfirepower.com/

[edit] External links

• (Spanish) Sitio oficial del Ministerio del Poder Popular para Defensa de Venezuela
• (Spanish) Sitio oficial del Ejército Libertador (Venezuela)
• (Spanish) Sitio oficial de la Armada de la República Bolivariana de Venezuela
• (Spanish) Sitio oficial de la Aviación Militar de Venezuela
• (Spanish) Sitio oficial de la Guardia Nacional de Venezuela
• (Spanish) Sitio oficial de la Aviación del Ejército de Venezuela
• (Spanish) Sitio oficial de la Milicia Nacional de Venezuela
• (Spanish) Sitio no oficial de la Fuerza Armada de Venezuela

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