Cuban security personnel and medical professionals are departing Venezuela following mounting pressure from the United States to dismantle the long-standing alliance between the two nations, multiple sources confirmed Thursday.
The shift comes as Interim President Delcy Rodriguez has begun relying on Venezuelan bodyguards for her personal security, a departure from her predecessors, Nicolás Maduro and Hugo Chávez, who both depended on elite Cuban security forces, according to four sources familiar with the matter.
The Cuban government has reported that 32 of its citizens were killed during the January 3 U.S. Military operation that resulted in Maduro’s capture. These individuals were part of a deep-rooted security agreement established in the late 2000s, which saw Cuban intelligence operatives embedded within Venezuela’s military and the DGCIM counterintelligence unit, a key component in suppressing domestic opposition.
“The Cuban influence was absolutely essential” to the survival of the Chavista government, stated Alejandro Velasco, an associate professor of history at New York University and an expert on Venezuela.
A former Venezuelan intelligence official revealed that several Cuban advisors have already been removed from their positions within the DGCIM. Reports indicate that groups of medical staff and security experts have been observed departing for Cuba in recent weeks.
A source close to Venezuela’s ruling Socialist Party stated that Rodriguez ordered the departures specifically to satisfy U.S. Demands. It remains unclear whether the Cuban personnel were compelled to leave by the new Venezuelan leadership, departed voluntarily, or were recalled by Havana.
Prior to the operation to remove Maduro, thousands of Cuban doctors, nurses and sports trainers were stationed in Venezuela as part of social programs initiated under Chávez. In return, Venezuela provided Cuba with a crucial supply of petroleum.
Following Maduro’s capture, President Donald Trump vowed to end the security relationship between Venezuela and Cuba. “Cuba lived, for many years, off of large amounts of OIL and MONEY from Venezuela. In return, Cuba provided ‘Security Services’ to the last two Venezuelan dictators, BUT NO LONGER!” Trump wrote on Truth Social on January 11.
A White House official affirmed that the U.S. Maintains “a very good relationship with the leaders of Venezuela” and believes that Rodriguez’s “own self-interest aligns with the advancement of our key objectives.”
Severing the Venezuela-Cuba relationship is part of a broader U.S. Strategy to undermine the communist regime in Havana. Since mid-December, Washington has blocked Venezuela from shipping oil to Cuba, economically isolating the island nation.
The U.S. Government is “talking to Cuba, whose leaders should come to an agreement,” the White House official added.
The Cuban government stated it is open to dialogue on equal terms, while condemning the oil blockade and vowing to resist U.S. Intervention.
Neither the Cuban nor Venezuelan governments responded to requests for comment, though both have publicly maintained that their relationship remains intact.
On February 8, Rodriguez appeared alongside Cuban Foreign Minister Bruno Rodríguez at a memorial service in Caracas for the victims of the U.S. Military operation. “To the brave Venezuelan people, we express the deepest solidarity of Cuba,” Bruno Rodríguez said at the event, before invoking the battle cry of Cuban revolutionary Ernesto “Che” Guevara: “Hasta la victoria siempre” (“Until victory, always”).
Later in January, Delcy Rodriguez also spoke by phone with Cuban leader Miguel Díaz-Canel, posting on social media that the two countries remained “united.” Díaz-Canel, following the same call, affirmed that Cuba was committed to “continue strengthening the historic ties of brotherhood and cooperation.”
A White House official acknowledged that Rodriguez and Díaz-Canel may be making such statements for domestic political reasons.
A source familiar with the Cuban government’s thinking indicated that some military personnel wounded during the U.S. Operation have returned to Cuba, while others remain active in Venezuela. The source also stated that many Cuban doctors continue to provide medical care in Venezuela.
Cuban state media reported in early January that the suspension of commercial flights and the closure of Venezuelan airspace delayed the return of Cuban doctors who were on vacation or completing their missions in Venezuela. Those flights resumed the week following the January 3 U.S. Operation.
A U.S. Source familiar with the matter stated that while the Cuban presence is diminishing, some undercover intelligence agents likely remain in the country to monitor the evolving political situation.
Frank Mora, a former U.S. Ambassador to the Organization of American States under the Biden administration, said, “Rodriguez is acting very carefully.”
“She wants to keep the Cubans at arm’s length until the situation calms down, until her control of power is clear, but she also doesn’t want to throw them completely under the bus,” Mora said.
At least some Cuban military advisors continue to work in Venezuela, according to four sources familiar with the matter. Cuban professors also continue to teach at UNES, the state university for police and security forces, according to a former police agent.
John Polga-Hecimovich, a professor at the U.S. Naval Academy who has studied the role of Cuban security advisors in Venezuela, stated that the legacy of the Cuban counterintelligence effort remains evident in Caracas, where key Maduro loyalists remain in power. “The Cubans didn’t protect Maduro, but they played a key role in keeping the Chavista government in power,” Polga-Hecimovich said. “The coup-proofing worked wonderfully.”
