According to U.S. government documents reviewed by the journalists, Maduro’s letter requested help overhauling radar installations, repairing fighter jets, and potentially delivering missiles. The letter was delivered during an October visit to Moscow by a senior Maduro aide, the Post said.
Earlier that month, Maduro claimed Venezuela had distributed 5,000 Soviet-era Igla-S man-portable surface-to-air missiles to troops nationwide.
The report also said the Maduro regime reached out to China and Iran for military aid and equipment, particularly radars.
Transport Minister Ramón Celestino Velásquez has coordinated recent shipments of military equipment and drones from Iran and plans to visit there, the documents show.
It was unclear how China and Iran responded, but Russia remains Maduro’s primary backer. On Sunday, an Il-76 transport plane—one of the Russian aircraft sanctioned by the Untied States in 2023 for arms smuggling and mercenary transport—landed in Caracas after routing over Africa to avoid Western airspace, according to FlightRadar24.
This week, Russia ratified a new strategic partnership treaty with Caracas.
Analysts told the newspaper that Moscow’s stakes in Maduro’s survival are high, pointing to joint projects such as a Kalashnikov ammunition plant opened in July in Aragua, nearly two decades after construction was first agreed. Russia also holds exploration rights to vast undeveloped natural gas and oil reserves.
However, experts said Russia’s capacity and interest in supporting Maduro may be lower than in past years, given its near-total commitment to the Russo–Ukrainian war.
“The standoff between Washington and Caracas could even offer the Russians some unexpected benefits as it turns American attention away from Europe,” the report concludes.