A transnational criminal network centered around the Cartel of the Suns — the terrorist organization embedded within the Venezuelan regime and the Bolivarian National Armed Forces (FANB) — is operating under the Nicolás Maduro regime’s protection. The existence and structure of this alliance, which includes the National Liberation Army (ELN), are documented in recent military intelligence reports and corroborated by analysis from organizations like InSight Crime and the International Crisis Group.
This collective alliance, the intelligence reports indicate, acts as a “strategic proxy” and armed wing in defense of the Maduro regime, representing a growing threat to the security and stability of Latin America and the Caribbean.
An alliance forged in Caracas
The reports, sourced from Middle Eastern intelligence agencies and held by the Colombian Military Forces, to which Colombian magazine Semana had access, reveal that the relationship between the ELN and the Venezuelan regime dates back more than four decades. According to Semana, the Maduro regime has provided ongoing logistical and military support to the Colombian guerrilla group.
Among the most significant revelations is the existence of active ELN camps in the Venezuelan states of Zulia, Apure, and Amazonas, under the protection of FANB units. Leaders of the Central Command (COCE), such as alias Gabino, Pablo Beltrán, and Pablito, have reportedly found refuge in these areas, consolidating the alliance between the insurgent group and Chavismo, according to Semana.
The documents also indicate that the FANB supplies weapons, resources, and logistical support to the ELN, strengthening direct cooperation between the two structures and solidifying their territorial control along the Colombia-Venezuela border.
This support has been decisive in the dynamics of the conflict in Arauca and the Catatumbo subregion of Colombia. During the conflict in Norte de Santander, which has intensified since 2018 following the demobilization of the Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia (FARC), the FANB has closed border crossings to FARC dissidents, thereby facilitating ELN offensives. This coordination allowed the insurgent group to expand its control in border areas, occupy strategic spaces left by the FARC, and consolidate itself as the dominant actor in the region.
The objective of this strategy, according to the reports, is to strengthen the Cartel of the Suns, expanding its control over drug trafficking routes, gold smuggling — a dynamic widely documented by the International Crisis Group.
The alliance is not only driven by military interests, but also by economic and criminal convergence. While the ELN solidifies its territorial power and access to illicit revenues, sectors of the FANB and the Venezuelan regime are expanding their influence over transnational illicit economies.
“Caracas’ support for the ELN provides the Maduro regime with tools to destabilize its neighbors, opportunities to obtain more illicit revenues, and, most importantly, the ability to threaten a ‘guerrilla war’ if the regime collapses,” said Ryan C. Berg, director of the Americas Program at the Center for Strategic and International Studies (CSIS).
Criminal structure and global network
The intelligence reports warn that the operations described are reportedly under the supervision of Diosdado Cabello, Maduro’s Minister of Interior, Justice, and Peace, Semana reported. Cabello plays an active role in planning and supervising joint actions between the FANB and the ELN, aimed at protecting the interests of the regime and the cartel itself.
Among the most notable operations, the reports mention cross-border incursions by the FANB, with Cabello’s backing, against Structure 33, a dissident group of the FARC, officially attributed to the ELN. The objective was reportedly to recover drug shipments and dispute territorial control in strategic sectors of the Colombia-Venezuela border. These actions left at least 80 dead and thousands displaced, consolidating the power of the Cartel of the Suns in the region, according to Semana.
The coordination of these operations suggests an unprecedented level of integration between Venezuelan state structures and criminal networks to strengthen the Cartel of the Suns and the strategic objectives of the Maduro regime.
The criminal network extends to global actors. The Atlantic Council has published extensive research detailing the Maduro-Hezbollah nexus, which includes facilitating money laundering operations through Iranian front companies registered in Venezuela. These businesses allegedly used Mahan Air flights to move funds and suspected illicit cargo between Venezuela, Africa, and the Middle East.
Meanwhile, the ELN uses the Venezuelan ports of La Guaira and Puerto Cabello as departure points for cocaine bound for West Africa, especially Guinea-Bissau, Cape Verde, and Cameroon, from where the drugs are shipped to Europe. Alliances with Brazilian cartels reinforce the Amazonian routes that connect to the ports of Santos and Paranaguá, consolidating a complex transnational drug trafficking network.
The ELN’s Northeast and Eastern fronts receive direct logistical and financial backing not only from the Venezuelan regime but also from Hezbollah and Brazilian criminal organizations — whose presence along the border has been consistently highlighted by organizations like Venezuela’s FundaRedes.
A hemispheric threat
Intelligence reports suggest the convergence of a state-backed criminal network, terrorist organizations, and global illicit actors reflects a sophisticated hybrid crime scenario. This activity is fundamentally destabilizing, posing a direct challenge to the security and sovereignty of neighboring democracies and the overall global order.
“The Maduro regime functions as a full-fledged criminal state, offering refuge to various groups, a permissive operating environment, and state complicity. This represents a huge challenge for the region and for the global order,” Berg warned.
