United States Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth said this Saturday (20) that the blockade of sanctioned oil tankers off the coast of Venezuela continues with “full force”.
The statement comes after the US Coast Guard, in partnership with the Pentagon, seized another ship off the Venezuelan coast.
“President Trump has been clear: the blockade on sanctioned oil tankers leaving or heading to Venezuela will remain in full force until Maduro’s criminal enterprise returns all stolen US assets,” Hegseth said on X.
“The Department of War, with our U.S. Coast Guard partners, will aggressively conduct maritime interdiction operations — through OPERATION SOUTHERN SPEAR — to dismantle illicit criminal networks. Violence, drugs and chaos will not control the Western Hemisphere,” he added.
The head of the Pentagon shared a video published by US Secretary of Homeland Security Kristi Noem, which allegedly shows the moment of the .
This is the second known case of interdiction of a ship near Venezuela by the US in the month of December, and the first after the president sanctioned entry and exit from the country.
While Trump’s order targets sanctioned oil tankers, the ship the U.S. seized Saturday is not under U.S. sanctions, a source familiar with the matter said. The interdiction was not challenged by the tanker’s crew.
The ship was a Panamanian-flagged oil tanker carrying Venezuelan oil, according to the American government source, and its final destination was Asia.
