Listen to this article
Estimated 5 minutes
The audio version of this article is generated by AI-based technology. Mispronunciations can occur. We are working with our partners to continually review and improve the results.
The U.S. seized two sanctioned oil tankers linked to Venezuela in back-to-back actions in the North Atlantic and the Caribbean Sea, officials said on Wednesday, and is removing sanctions to enable the shipping and sale of oil from the South American country to markets worldwide.
U.S. European Command announced the seizure of the merchant vessel Bella 1 for “violations of U.S. sanctions” in a social medial post. The U.S. had been pursuing the tanker since last month, after it tried to evade a U.S. blockade on sanctioned oil vessels around Venezuela.
Then, Secretary of Homeland Security Kristi Noem revealed that U.S. forces also took control of the tanker Sophia in the Caribbean in a social media post. Noem said both ships were “either last docked in Venezuela or en route to it.”
Noem said that both ships are part of a large “ghost fleet” of sanctioned vessels that carry oil from Russia, Iran and Venezuela in defiance of Western sanctions, mostly to customers in Asia.
The Trump administration is “selectively” removing sanctions to enable the shipping and sale of Venezuelan oil to markets worldwide, according to an outline of the policies published Wednesday by the Energy Department.
The oil sales are slated to begin immediately with the sale of 30 to 50 million barrels from the South American country. The U.S. government said the sales “will continue indefinitely,” with the proceeds settling in U.S.-controlled accounts at “globally recognized banks.” The money would then be disbursed to the U.S. and Venezuelan populations at the “discretion” of Trump’s government.
The two ship seizures come just days after U.S. military forces conducted a surprise nighttime raid on Venezuela’s capital, Caracas, and captured president Nicolás Maduro and his wife, whom President Donald Trump’s administration has accused of partnering with drug traffickers.
Since that raid, officials in the administration have said they intend to continue to seize sanctioned vessels connected to the country.
“We are enforcing American laws with regards to oil sanctions,” Secretary of State Marco Rubio said on NBC on Sunday. “We go to court. We get a warrant. We seize those boats with oil. And that will continue.”
The U.S. military seized the Bella 1 and subsequently handed over control of it to law enforcement officials, said a U.S. official, who spoke to The Associated Press on Wednesday on the condition of anonymity to discuss sensitive military operations.
The ship was sanctioned by the U.S. in 2024 for allegedly smuggling cargo for a company linked to Lebanese militant group Hezbollah. The U.S. Coast Guard attempted to board it in the Caribbean in December as it headed for Venezuela, which the Trump administration has placed under naval blockade. The ship refused boarding and headed across the Atlantic.
Ship changed its name, flag
Since then, the ship changed its name to “Marinera” mid-voyage, registered under Russia and the crew hastily painted a picture of the Russian flag on its hull.
Earlier Wednesday, open-source maritime tracking sites showed its position as between Scotland and Iceland, travelling north.
Flight tracking websites showed several U-28A U.S. special operations aircraft landing at Wick John O’Groats airport on the northern tip of Scotland before flying further north toward Iceland on Wednesday. P8 Poseidon submarine-hunting aircraft and KC-135 refuelling planes were also seen on tracking websites heading to the area near the tanker.
WATCH | U.S. strike hits dock facility in earlier pursuit of sanctioned oil tanker:
Trump says U.S. strike hit dock in Venezuela
CNN, citing sources, reported that the CIA had carried out a drone strike earlier this month on a port facility on the coast of Venezuela. U.S. President Donald Trump said the U.S. struck a facility where boats accused of carrying drugs ‘load up.’
Russia’s Foreign Ministry said before the seizure that it was “following with concern the anomalous situation that has developed around the Russian oil tanker Marinera.”
The ministry’s statement, which was carried by the official Tass news agency, added that “for several days now, a U.S. Coast Guard ship has been following the Marinera, even though our vessel is approximately 4,000 kilometres from the American coast.”
In a post to social media, U.S. European Command confirmed that the U.S. Coast Guard cutter Munro tracked the ship ahead of its seizure “pursuant to a warrant issued by a U.S. federal court.”
The military command went on to say that the seizure supported President Donald Trump’s proclamation on targeting sanctioned vessels that “threaten the security and stability of the Western Hemisphere.” The tanker’s seizure comes just days after U.S. military forces conducted a surprise nighttime raid on Venezuela’s capital, Caracas, and captured president Nicolás Maduro and his wife.
In the wake of this raid, officials in Trump’s Republican administration have said that they intended to continue to seize sanctioned vessels connected to the country.
“We are enforcing American laws with regards to oil sanctions,” Secretary of State Marco Rubio said on NBC on Sunday. “We go to court. We get a warrant. We seize those boats with oil. And that will continue.”
