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Kristin Huang

Authorities in Caracas have deployed Chinese-built armoured personnel carriers against protesters calling for the downfall of Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro.
Eight VN-4 “Rhinoceros” carriers were used on Tuesday against supporters of opposition leader Juan Guaidó in the country’s capital, according to state broadcaster Venezolana de Televisión.
The carriers were rolled out a day after China sent emergency supplies to Venezuela, including about 65 tonnes of medicines and surgical products.
The carriers are armed with a machine gun and manufactured by China North Industries Corporation. They are designed to be used in various situations, ranging from peacekeeping to law enforcement missions.




Venezuela bought 121 of the vehicles from China in 2012, according to a report by the US Congress’s US-China Economic and Security Review Commission.
In 2014, the Venezuelan National Guard also deployed the VN-4 against protesters.
China and Russia, or US and EU: who’s backing whom in Venezuela?
The presence of the vehicle reflects China’s consistent arms sales to Venezuela, which have also included K-8 trainer aircraft, VN-16 light tanks and VN-18 infantry fighting vehicles.
Venezuela has been China’s biggest military customer in Latin America since 2006, with high oil prices enabling greater government spending, according to the Stockholm International Peace Research Institute. But no purchases have been made in the past two years.
Data from the institute shows that in the past decade China also sold weapons to Argentina, Bolivia and Ecuador.




In 2012, Venezuela signed a US$500 million deal – China’s biggest to in the region – for Chinese military equipment that included anti-tank missiles, self-propelled mortars, self-propelled rocket launchers and armoured vehicles.
Song Junying, a China-Latin American affairs expert from the Chinese Academy of Social Sciences, said China’s arms sales would not be affected by the unrest in Venezuela.
“China will continue supporting Maduro because he’s the legally elected president,” he said.
Over the past decade, China has loaned US$50 billion to Venezuela, and while Caracas has been gradually paying off that debt with oil shipments, it still owes Beijing about US$20 billion.


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Venezuelan crisis

Venezuela sends in China-built ‘Rhinoceros’ vehicles to quell anti-government protests

Venezuelan security forces used Chinese-built armoured personnel carriers against anti-government protests in Caracas. Photo: AFP

Transcript: Juan Guaido on Venezuela’s ties with China

Venezuela’s self-declared interim president Juan Guaido says he wants a “productive and mutually beneficial” relationship with China. Photo: AFP

Venezuela's President Nicolas Maduro speaks during a news conference at Miraflores Palace in Caracas, Venezuela January 25, 2019. REUTERS/Manaure Quintero NO RESALES. NO ARCHIVES.

Venezuela opposition seeks to maintain momentum against President Nicolas Maduro’s government after failed military revolt

Flames and smoke rise from an armored vehicle during clashes between protesters and members of the National Bolivarian Armed Forces after an attempted military uprising on Francisco Fajardo Highway in Altamira, Caracas. Photo: Bloomberg

(EDITORS NOTE: Image contains graphic content.) People assist an injured member of the media during clashes between protesters and members of the National Bolivarian Armed Forces after an attempted military uprising in Altamira, Caracas, Venezuela, on Wednesday, May 1, 2019. One day after an attempt to spark a military uprising fell flat, Venezuela's opposition was at it again Wednesday, making another desperate effort to rally residents to oust President Nicolas Maduro. Photographer: Carlos Becerra/Bloomberg

epa07541745 Supporters of Venezuelan opposition leader Juan Guaido place posters and slogans outside the Venezuela Embassy occupied by anti-regime change protesters in Washington, DC, USA, 01 May 2019. Venezuelan interim President Juan Guaido has asked supporters to take to the streets in order to end the regime of President Nicolas Maduro. The US and fifty other nations support the ouster of Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro. EPA-EFE/ERIK S. LESSER

Venezuelans await more unrest as opposition leader Guaido pledges to ‘keep up pressure’ until President Maduro is out

A masked Venezuelan demonstrator gestures during a protest in support of Venezuela's opposition leader Juan Guaido. Photo: Reuters

(190422) -- WASHINGTON, April 22, 2019 (Xinhua) -- U.S. Secretary of State Mike Pompeo speaks during a press briefing in Washington D.C., the United States, April 22, 2019. U.S. President Donald Trump has decided not to reissue the sanctions waivers allowing major importers to continue buying Iran's oil when they expire in early May, the White House said Monday. U.S. Secretary of State Mike Pompeo told reporters later in the day that the U.S. sanctions will be reimposed on all countries that import oil from Iran since May 2. (Xinhua/Liu Jie)

A Venezuelan National Guard (GNB) vehicle ploughs into opposition demonstrators in Caracas, Venezuela in this still image taken from a video footage April 30, 2019. REUTERS/REUTERS TV

FILE PHOTO: FILE PHOTO: Venezuela's President Nicolas Maduro speaks during a ceremony to mark the 17th anniversary of the return to power of Venezuela's late President Hugo Chavez in Caracas, Venezuela April 13, 2019. REUTERS/Carlos Garcia Rawlins/File Photo

Venezuelan opposition leader Juan Guaido, who many nations have recognised as the country's rightful interim ruler, talks with a military member near the Generalisimo Francisco de Miranda Airbase "La Carlota", in Caracas, Venezuela April 30, 2019. REUTERS/Carlos Garcia Rawlins

China and Russia, or the US and the EU: who is backing whom in the Venezuela political crisis?

Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro gesturing and Venezuela's National Assembly head Juan Guaido. Photo: AFP

(FILES) In this file photo taken on February 1, 2017, Venezuelan soldiers drive a Russian-made tank during a military parade in Caracas. - The US on March 29, 2019, urged Venezuela's military to act to "protect" its citizens as it renewed criticism of Russia's deployment of forces to prop up President Nicolas Maduro. "Maduro will only use this military support to further repress the people of Venezuela; perpetuate the economic crisis that has destroyed Venezuela's economy; and endanger regional stability," US national security advisor John Bolton said of the Russian presence. (Photo by JUAN BARRETO / AFP)

Venezuelan opposition leader Juan Guaido, who many nations have recognized as the country's rightful interim ruler, attends a rally against Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro's government in Caracas, Venezuela, April 6, 2019. REUTERS/Carlos Garcia Rawlins

Chinese President Xi Jinping meets with Venezuela's President Nicolas Maduro at the Great Hall of the People September 1, 2015 in Beijing, China. (Parker Song-Pool/Getty Images/TNS) **FOR USE WITH THIS STORY ONLY**

Secretary of State Mike Pompeo delivers a speech in Santiago, Chile, Friday, April 12, 2019, kicking off a four-country tour of Latin America. Pompeo said Friday that China's financing of President Nicolás Maduro's government is prolonging the crisis in Venezuela. (AP Photo/Luis Hidalgo)

Supporters of Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro take part in a rally in Caracas on April 6, 2019. - Venezuela's opposition leader Juan Guaido urged his supporters to demonstrate in the streets Saturday to maintain pressure on his rival President Nicolas Maduro, amid rising anger over the collapse of public services. Maduro, who blames US-backed sabotage on recent blackouts that deprived millions of power, has also called a pro-government march in Caracas, urging his supporters onto the streets for a "March in defence of peace." (Photo by Federico Parra / AFP)

News

China

Military

Military equipment part of a range that Beijing has sold to Caracas, its biggest Latin American customer


Military equipment part of a range that Beijing has sold to Caracas, its biggest Latin American customer.


Venezuela

Russia

Diplomacy

China’s military

Venezuela sends in China-built ‘Rhinoceros’ vehicles to quell anti-government protests

.css-1mniedq{color:inherit;font-weight:inherit;font-size:inherit;font-family:inherit;line-height:inherit;}Military equipment part of a range that Beijing has sold to Caracas, its biggest Latin American customer

Military equipment part of a range that Beijing has sold to Caracas, its biggest Latin American customer