1992 – Diosdado Cabello participates in Hugo Chávez’s failed coup attempt, establishing his long‑term role as a Chávez‑era loyalist and future power broker in Venezuela [2].

2014 – President Nicolás Maduro appoints Vladimir Padrino López as defense minister, cementing Padrino’s position as a senior security official loyal to the Chavista regime [3].

2018 – The United States Treasury sanctions Cabello, his wife and brother for alleged narcotics trafficking, marking the start of sustained U.S. financial pressure on Venezuela’s top officials [2].

2018 – The United States also sanctions Defense Minister Padrino for using the military to uphold the Maduro regime, expanding the U.S. punitive campaign against Venezuela’s security elite [3].

2019 – The U.S. Department of Justice indicts Padrino on charges of conspiring to transport over five kilograms of cocaine on a U.S.-registered aircraft, intensifying legal threats against the defense minister [3].

2024 – Cabello is appointed interior minister, giving him control of Venezuela’s internal security apparatus and positioning him at the center of the late‑2025 crackdown on political opponents [2].

Late 2025 – Cabello’s interior ministry oversees a wave of political kidnappings and disappearances, a crackdown that draws international human‑rights criticism and fuels domestic unrest [2].

Dec 15, 2025 – Defense Minister Padrino publicly accuses the United States of a Caribbean power grab and declares that Venezuela will defend its sovereignty, posting the remarks on Instagram [3].

Dec 15, 2025 – Padrino announces that the Bolivarian National Armed Forces go on high alert with massive troop deployments to protect the country against perceived U.S. aggression [3].

Dec 15, 2025 – The U.S. State Department’s Narcotics Reward Program offers a $15 million bounty for information leading to Padrino’s arrest, reinforcing Washington’s pressure on Venezuela’s defense chief [3].

Jan 7, 2026 – A video surfaces showing Interior Minister Cabello in Caracas surrounded by armed men, wearing a bullet‑proof vest and helmet, while he labels Maduro’s abduction a “criminal, terrorist attack” and urges calm [2].

Jan 7, 2026 – Attorney General Pam Bondi unseals a superseding indictment that names Cabello as the second‑named defendant after Maduro, accusing him of drug trafficking and elevating his legal exposure [2].

Jan 7, 2026 – Analysts warn that Cabello is in “survival mode,” suggesting exile, imprisonment, or continued armed resistance as the most likely outcomes for the embattled interior minister [2].

Jan 10, 2026 – Delta Force operatives capture Nicolás Maduro and his wife in Caracas and transport them to the United States, where they appear in a New York federal court on drug and weapons charges [1].

Jan 10, 2026 – Delcy Rodríguez is sworn in as acting president, asserting that no external agents govern Venezuela and that the government itself runs the country [1].

Jan 10, 2026 – Interior Minister Cabello and Defense Minister Padrino remain in their posts despite U.S. bounties of $25 million and $15 million respectively, highlighting ongoing U.S. pressure on the remaining regime leaders [1].

Jan 10, 2026 – Opposition leader María Corina Machado calls for new elections as a path forward, criticizing the transition and seeking international support, while former President Trump questions her leadership but hints at possible engagement with opposition figures [1].

Jan 10, 2026 – Venezuela announces the release of a large number of political prisoners, including opposition lawmakers, as a symbolic gesture toward peace, prompting human‑rights groups to call for broader releases [1].

Jan 10, 2026 – President Trump suggests that Venezuela could hand over tens of millions of barrels of sanctioned oil to the United States as part of negotiations, while PDVSA enters talks with Washington, underscoring the precarious energy and geopolitical dynamics of the regime change [1].

Future (unspecified date) – The opposition pushes for scheduled national elections to restore democratic governance, a demand that remains pending as the acting government consolidates power [1].