Military missions may deepen malaise in Venezuela

Significance

Amid mounting economic chaos linked to declining production, vulnerable distribution networks and lack of supply, Maduro has launched the Great Sovereign and Secure Supply Mission. The initiative, to be headed by Defence Minister Vladimir Padrino Lopez, gives the armed forces the primary role in a nominally civilian government but will not address the structural drivers of the scarcities of food and basic goods that are exacerbating insecurity and violence.

Impacts

• Venezuela will be forced to consider reopening the border by the pressures caused on the Colombian side by temporary openings.
• Protests will continue to escalate as short-term initiatives and constant restructurings fail to alleviate scarcity.
• The National Assembly will continue to push back on government strategy and policy.
• This will place it on a collision course with the military in addition to the government and the judiciary.