During yesterday’s conference attended by U.S. President Donald Trump, the military aspects were outlined by the Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, Gen. John Daniel “Raizin” Caine. In response, Poland’s National Security Bureau (BBN) published a preliminary assessment of events in Venezuela.
According to BBN, the long-standing presence of U.S. forces in the region, combined with continuous multi-domain reconnaissance and electronic warfare, forced Venezuelan air-defense systems to operate under emissions restrictions. This, in turn, exposed vulnerabilities inherent in Russian/Soviet operational concepts used by Venezuela, particularly the practice of shutting down systems when unidentified threats are detected.
BBN assessed that Venezuelan command, reconnaissance, and electronic-warfare systems were effectively neutralized. The operation reportedly involved coordinated actions in the cyber and space domains, alongside kinetic strikes, requiring extensive planning and authorization to limit unintended losses.
The Bureau noted that the U.S. leveraged combined intelligence capabilities, including those of the CIA, NSA, and NGA. The operation appears to have relied on highly precise SIGINT, corroborated by human intelligence, possibly from within Maduro’s inner circle or from on-site observers. This intelligence enabled Delta Force units to capture Nicolás Maduro and his wife with minimal resistance, exploiting surprise.
BBN also suggested that some intelligence and tactical experience used in the operation may have been derived from U.S. involvement in Ukraine.
Reports cited by the Bureau indicate that parts of Caracas’s communications infrastructure, including cellular and data networks, remained operational, likely in a controlled manner to support U.S. operational objectives. Maintaining such connectivity points to U.S. capabilities in large-scale, real-time communications monitoring while extracting operational intelligence.
The special operation was reportedly masked as the opening phase of a large-scale air-land campaign to achieve cognitive effects: shaping public attitudes and prompting Venezuelan armed forces to withdraw to shelters and abandon positions. Where forces remained active, they were neutralized kinetically. The primary objective was the capture of Maduro, with his elimination considered a conditional option.
BBN emphasized the extensive integration of manned and unmanned systems, special forces, and conventional units, noting that the level of coordination suggests the use of advanced, AI-supported systems.
In conclusion, BBN argued that post-Soviet operational doctrines, training, and equipment do not guarantee security and are ineffective when confronted with U.S. multi-domain operational art and doctrine.