The United States seized an oil tanker off the coast of Venezuela on Wednesdayin what constitutes a new and significant rise in President Donald Trump’s pressure campaign against the government of Nicolás Maduro. The president himself announced the operation at the White House before an event on a new visa program: “We hijacked an oil tanker off the coast of Venezuela. A large, very large ship,” he said, adding “Other things happen”.
The operation – carried out by the FBI, the Department of Homeland Security and the Coast Guard with support from the Pentagon – was unveiled by the attorney general Pam Bondi as part of efforts to dismantle illegal oil transportation networks. Bondi explained that the ship was carrying crude oil from Venezuela and Iran and that “that was true.” was sanctioned by the United States for his involvement in an illegal oil transportation network that supports foreign terrorist organizations“.
A video released by Bondi showed US forces rappelling from a helicopter onto the ship. This was announced by government officials There was no resistance or casualtiesidentified the ship as skipper and confirmed that it was carrying oil PDVSA. They added that the ship had previously been linked to Iranian crude oil smuggling and was flying a flag that did not match its registration and had its final destination in Asia.
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The seizure came in response to a court order issued two weeks earlier that was linked to the ship’s previous activities in Iran’s secret oil market. However, it is not clear whether the order called for the seizure of the ship, the cargo, or both, nor is it clear who the ultimate owner of the retained oil will be. On request As for what would happen to crude oil, Trump replied: “We’ll keep it, I think.”and added: “It was confiscated for a very good reason.”
The operation is related to the growing US military presence in the Caribbean. In recent months, the Trump administration has deployed more than 15,000 troops and a dozen ships, including the aircraft carrier USS Gerald R. Ford, in actions the administration has justified on the premise of “armed conflict” against drug cartels. The US has been doing this since September more than 22 attacks on ships in the regionthat have caused more than 80 deathsin operations whose legal basis has been questioned by experts who warn of possible violations of international law.
In parallel, the government is conducting internal investigations into previous attacks, including a controversial “double strike” on September 2nd. The Defense Minister, Pete Hegsethdefended the maneuver by appealing to the “Fog of War”. Democratic and Republican lawmakers have launched investigations into the legality of this type of operation.
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For Venezuela, which is heavily dependent on its crude oil exports, the seizure of an oil tanker represents a crisis possibly severe blow to an economy already weakened by sanctions, corruption and declines in production. Since the United States is no longer its main buyer, China absorbs about 80% of Venezuelan exportswhile smaller quantities are destined for refineries in the US Gulf and Cuba.
Maduro, for his part, accused Washington Try to wage war against him. After learning of the seizure, he avoided referring to the incident directly, but spoke about tensions with the United States over agricultural producers: “This is no time for cowards. It’s fight timeTrump, who recently declared that Maduro’s “days are numbered,” offered a $50 million reward for his arrest.
The operation coincided with the ceremony in Oslo where the Nobel Peace Prize was officially awarded to the Venezuelan opposition leader. Maria Corina Machado. Her daughter Ana Corina Sosa accepted the award on her behalf, stating that her mother was determined to live in a free Venezuela and that she would “never give up.”
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