Pablo Uchoa

The ‘Bolivarian Soldier’: Chavismo and the Transformation of the Armed Forces in Venezuela

Principal supervisors: Dr Vinicius de Carvalho, King’s College London. 
Subsidiary supervisors: Dr Par Engstrom & Professor Gareth Davies, UCL Institute of the Americas. 
 

My research highlights the transformation of the military in Venezuela since 1999, after the election of Hugo Chávez. I concentrate on efforts to craft a distinctly nationalistic, “Bolivarian” armed force, guided by a new military doctrine that represents a radical shift away from the liberal, Western-inspired C-M model prior to chavismo. By drawing insights from the most relevant, sometimes competing, theoretical models to explain civil-military relations (CMR), my research offers a framework to analyse the military in politics in Venezuela, and hopes to contribute with elements for our understanding of CMR more broadly.

Chavismo has long been one of my main areas of interest, both as an undergraduate and a Masters’ student. I am the author of ‘Venezuela: A Encruzilhada de Hugo Chávez’ (Globo, São Paulo, 2003), which was awarded an honorary mention at the Vladimir Herzog award for human rights in Brazil. As a journalist, I’ve covered international politics, diplomacy and world affairs for 25 years, having worked 16 years for the BBC and contributed with prestigious publications like Jane’s Intelligence Review. 

My research is funded by the London Arts and Humanities Partnership (LAHP). I conducted field research in Caracas in February and March 2024 and was a visiting research fellow at the John W. Kluge Center, Library of Congress in Washington-DC, between April and September 2023.

Books

• Venezuela: A Encruzilhada de Hugo Chávez. São Paulo: Globo, 2003.

Chapters in review

• Engstrom, Par and Paulo Drinot (eds). “The military and the state: Insights from Venezuela”, upcoming collection of papers presented during the festschrift in memory of Professor Kevin Middlebrook.

Analyses and long formats

• Venezuela’s War of All People. NACLA Report on the Americas, vol. 55 (4), Winter 2023.
• Democracy stays: Brazilian presidential elections highlight precarity of civil- military relations. Janes Intelligence Review (online), 27/12/2022.
• Recovery position: Cuba approaches economic and political crossroads after protests. Janes Intelligence Review, vol. 33:12 (December 2021).
• Venezuelan president consolidates political and military power. Jane’s Intelligence Review: vol. 33:2 (February 2021).
• Polity policing: State-level initiatives lead to drop in violent deaths in Brazil. Jane’s Intelligence Review: vol. 32:5 (May 2020).
• Strategic direction: Mexico grapples with direction of intelligence and security reforms. Jane’s Intelligence Review: vol. 31:9 (September 2019).
• Virtual defence: Cybercrime set to rise as priorities shift in Brazil. Jane’s Intelligence Review: vol. 31:3 (March 2019).
• Double jeopardy: military unrest and hyperinflation threaten Venezuelan president. Jane’s Intelligence Review: vol. 30:11 (November 2018).
• Brazil attempts intelligence reform amid deepening security crisis. Jane’s Intelligence Review: vol. 30:4 (April 2018).
• Tiered loyalties: pressures build on Venezuelan president. Jane’s Intelligence Review: vol. 30:1 (January 2018).