Venezuela kicked off two days of military drills on Saturday in response to US President Donald Trump's threat of military action and newly announced sanctions on the crisis-stricken nation. War planes, tanks and 200,000 troops of the National Bolivarian Armed Forces (FANB) deployed along with 700,000 reserves and civil militia members as the exercises were formally launched by socialist President Nicolas Maduro.
"The people and the FANB are defending territory and sovereignty," Maduro wrote on Twitter. Trump warned on August 11 that the United States was mulling a range of options against Venezuela, "including a possible military option if necessary." Top US officials later played down the threat. "No military actions are anticipated in the near future," said National security advisor HR McMaster.
But tension surged again when the White House made good on the sanctions threat on Friday, unveiling its first-ever such measures to target Venezuela as a whole, rather than just Maduro and his inner circle. The measures ban trade in new bonds issued by the Venezuelan government or its cash-cow oil company, PDVSA.
That could choke off access to New York debt markets and substantially raise the likelihood of Venezuela being forced into default. Trump's threat of military force meanwhile has bolstered Maduro's oft-repeated claim that Washington is plotting to topple him and wants to grab control of Venezuela's oil - the largest proven reserves in the world.
Defense Minister Vladimir Padrino Lopez said the armed forces support "all measures being implemented to counter the financial blockade." In an address at one of the exercises near Caracas, he told assembled troops the drills were "for the defense of the whole country" against "imperial aggression."
Padrino said the exercises would include rifle practice on Saturday and combat maneuvers on Sunday. Venezuela's center right-led opposition and international powers including Washington say Maduro is turning Venezuela into a dictatorship. Maduro's opponents accuse military police and pro-Maduro militia of beating and killing anti-government protesters who are demanding elections to replace him.
Protest clashes have left 125 people dead so far this year, according to prosecutors. Maduro says the violence and the economic crisis are a US-backed conspiracy. The US embassy in Caracas advised its citizens in the country to stay away from the military exercises, warning of the risk of action by armed civilian loyalists.
Elected in 2013, Maduro, the political heir to the late Hugo Chavez, has hung onto power despite food shortages and social upheaval. His grip is largely thanks to the support of the military, which holds vast powers in his government, including over food distribution.
The opposition has repeatedly called on the army to abandon Maduro - so far to no avail. He has faced only low-level dissent, such as from the two rebel officers who staged a raid on an army base this month. Military analyst Rocio San Miguel said this weekend's exercises aimed to discourage "any disloyalty in the ranks of the FANB, which is a worry for the intelligence services," and "to reinforce the anti-imperialist line."
On Thursday, the president warned the armed forces not to break ranks. "We must be clear, especially for the youth in the military, that we must close ranks within the homeland - that this is no time for any fissures and that those with doubts should leave the armed forces immediately," he said in a speech to the top military brass. "You are with Trump and the imperialists, or you are with the Bolivarian national armed forces and the homeland," he added. "Never before has Venezuela been threatened in such a way."