“Today we can say that our objective, as sworn to by the President and the First Lady, is the preservation of Venezuelan national power. Let no one be mistaken,” stated Acting President Delcy Rodríguez in her annual address to the National Assembly, presenting the Executive’s report on its performance during 2025.
At the start of her address, in compliance with Article 237 of the Constitution and on behalf of President Nicolás Maduro, Rodríguez requested a minute of applause for the young heroes and heroines who died in combat against the invading aggressor. “Honor and glory to our humble young Venezuelans, who fought in the dark early morning of January 3, 2026. They opened a new page in our history,” she said.
Paying tribute to First Lady Cilia Flores, “my sister, the deputy,” whose seat in the Legislative Palace was adorned with a red rose “representing the beauty of Venezuelan patriots,” she said: “That profound pain felt by those of us who love our country, who deeply believe in our sovereignty, in our independence, and who love our president and the first lady… We transform that pain into tireless work for them.”
Before representatives of the branches of government, the judiciary, the armed forces, members of parliament, members of the accredited diplomatic corps, and family members of President Maduro and Cilia Flores, the acting president recalled that she had been working with the president on this speech until six hours before his kidnapping.
“Bolívar, that man of adversity, has always been in his spirit, because in the worst of times, he always had a smile, optimism ahead of him, and a deep belief in God who offers us his protection at every step,” she said, remembering the president.
“In the worst of circumstances — a criminal blockade the likes of which our republic has never known — President Maduro always told me: ‘Have faith in the people, in the communes, in the communal councils, in the farmers, in the fishermen, in the businessmen and women of Venezuela, in the hydrocarbon workers, in the productive unity of Venezuela,’” she added.
In presenting the Admirable Challenge 2026 plan, so named by President Maduro and inspired by “the admirable campaign of our Liberator,” she stated that it “outlines very clear guidelines for maintaining the productive levels of our nation, which today reach 99% supply.”
This plan, she said, is designed to “maintain growth levels in the agro-industry, in vegetables, grains, fishing, and animal protein, which has exceeded 10% of the gross domestic product. We made a plan, and we have a plan for 2026. May the hope of our people not be erased by anything or anyone.”
The acting president of Venezuela recalled that the immediate step prior to the January attack was the naval blockade in December, “which has sought to limit our possibilities as an energy-exporting country; to prevent Venezuela, in free trade relations with the world, from selling the products of its energy industry.”
In her annual address to the National Assembly, the acting president reaffirmed Venezuela’s right to relations with the U.S., but also with all countries of the world. “There is a stain on relations between Venezuela and the United States, but we will resolve it face to face with our diplomacy,” she stated.
And Delcy Rodriguez affirmed that, regardless of political trends, Venezuelans “must go together to defend our sovereignty and the peace of the Republic” and stressed her firm and sovereign position, which is manifested in Bolivarian peace diplomacy: “If I have to go to Washington, I will go standing tall, not crawling.”
IMAGE CREDIT: National Assembly Annual Address / January 15, 2026 / Delcy Rodríguez *** In presenting the Admirable Challenge 2026 plan, so named by President Maduro, Delcy Rodríguez stated that it “outlines very clear guidelines to maintain the production levels of our nation, which today reach 99% supply.” Photo: Presidential Press Office.
[ SOURCE: teleSUR ]
