The US Coast Guard captured the second oil tanker off Venezuela this Saturday. The ship has a Panamanian flag and was destined for Asia
The Trump administration is hovering over Caracas and, according to an official familiar with the matter, the United States intercepted and seized a ship off the coast of Venezuela on Saturday.
It was the second known case of a U.S. capture of a ship near Venezuela this month and comes after President Donald Trump this week announced a “blockade” on sanctioned oil tankers entering and leaving the country. On December 10, the US seized a man named Skipper, who had been under sanctions due to links to Iran.
While Trump’s directive this week was aimed at sanctioned oil tankers, the ship the US seized on Saturday is not subject to US sanctions, US administration official says. The seizure was not contested by the tanker’s crew.
The ship was a Panamanian-flagged oil tanker carrying Venezuelan oil, according to the official, and its final destination was Asia.
This Saturday’s operation was conducted by the US Coast Guard, with the assistance of the American armed forces, and took place in international waters, the official adds.
Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem, whose agency includes the Coast Guard, posted a seven-minute video on Saturday afternoon showing a helicopter hovering over the oil tanker. Kristi Noem wrote that the tanker was seized in a “dawn raid” by the Coast Guard with support from the Department of Defense and that it had last been docked in Venezuela.
“The United States will continue to pursue the illicit movement of sanctioned oil that is used to finance narcoterrorism in the region,” said the Secretary of Homeland Security.
In a pre-dawn action early this morning on Dec. 20, the US Coast Guard with the support of the Department of War apprehended an oil tanker that was last docked in Venezuela.
The United States will continue to pursue the illicit movement of sanctioned oil that is used to fund…
— Secretary Kristi Noem (@Sec_Noem)
Meanwhile, Venezuela’s Foreign Minister announced on Saturday that Iran offered its cooperation to confront what it described as “acts of piracy” and “international terrorism” by the US government.
Foreign Minister Yvan Gil said on Telegram that he spoke by phone with his Iranian counterpart, Abbas Araghchi, to review bilateral relations and discuss “recent developments in the Caribbean, especially threats” and the “theft of ships loaded with Venezuelan oil”.
Gil said Tehran expressed “full solidarity” with Venezuela and offered cooperation “in all areas” to confront US actions, which he said violate international law.
Along with ground attacks on Venezuelan soil, the ship seizures have increased pressure on Caracas, attacking its economic lifeline, which was already under pressure following new sanctions on the oil sector earlier this year.
The United States has been waging a pressure campaign on Venezuela for months, which has included sending thousands of troops and an aircraft carrier strike group to the Caribbean, attacks on boats suspected of drug trafficking and repeated threats against President Nicolás Maduro.
The American military has killed 104 people in attacks that destroyed 29 alleged drug vessels, attacks that the Trump administration has sold as an effort to crack down on illegal drug and migrant flows from Venezuela. But his actions also point to a broad pressure campaign against Maduro – whose removal, according to White House chief of staff Susie Wiles, is the administration’s true goal.
Trump’s announcement this week of a “blockade” also underscored the president’s focus on the country’s oil, which he said the U.S. should have access to if Maduro is ousted. The state-owned company Petróleos de Venezuela controls the country’s oil industry. Houston-based Chevron is the only US company that drills in Venezuela and pays a percentage of its production to PDVSA under a sanctions waiver.
Venezuela’s oil reserves are the largest in the world, but they operate well below capacity due to international sanctions. Much of the country’s oil is sold to China.
Venezuela criticized the blockade earlier this week, calling it “a reckless and serious threat.” The country stated that it will continue to defend its sovereignty and national interests.
Venezuelan Vice President Delcy Rodríguez said in a statement on Saturday that the country “rejects the theft and hijacking of a new private ship carrying Venezuelan oil” and that it “will take all appropriate measures, including communicating the fact to the United Nations Security Council, other multilateral organizations and the governments of the world.”
