U.S. Seizes Russian-Flagged Tanker, Another Tied to Venezuela

Reuters

A U.S. Coast Guard official looks through binoculars at the ship Marinera (Ex-Bella 1) in this handout image released 7 January 2026.

The U.S. seized two Venezuela-linked oil tankers in the Atlantic Ocean on Wednesday, one sailing under Russia's flag.

After capturing Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro in a Saturday military raid on Caracas, the U.S. is escalating its blockade of vessels that are under sanctions and going to and from the South American country, a member of the OPEC oil producers group.

The White House also said it plans to roll back some of the sanctions the U.S. President placed on Venezuelan oil in 2019 during his first term.

A weeks-long chase across the Atlantic ended on Wednesday morning when the U.S. Coast Guard and U.S. military special forces, bearing a judicial seizure warrant, apprehended the Marinera crude oil tanker, which had refused to be boarded last month before switching to Russia's flag, officials said.

With a Russian submarine and vessels nearby, the seizure risked more confrontation with Russia, which has condemned U.S. actions over Venezuela and is already at odds with the West due to the war in Ukraine. The Kremlin did not respond to a request for comment on what is a public holiday in Russia.

"It was a fake Russian oil tanker," U.S. Vice President JD Vance said in an interview on Fox News. "They basically tried to pretend to be a Russian oil tanker in an effort to avoid the sanctions regime."

Earlier on Wednesday, the U.S. Coast Guard also intercepted a tanker carrying Venezuelan oil, the Panama-flagged M Sophia, near the northeast coast of South America, the U.S. officials said, in the fourth seizure in recent weeks. The tanker was fully loaded, according to records of Venezuela's state oil company PDVSA.

The Marinera, formerly known as the Bella-1, was empty of oil, but the U.S. says it and the M Sophia belong to a "shadow fleet" of tankers used to transport sanctioned oil from Venezuela and Iran.

"The only maritime energy transport allowed will be that consistent with American law and national security," Stephen Miller, deputy White House chief of staff, said in a statement.

"There is unlimited economic potential for the Venezuelan energy sector through legitimate and authorized commercial avenues established by the United States."

The U.S. President has openly spoken of controlling Venezuela's vast oil reserves, in conjunction with U.S. oil companies, after arresting and jailing Maduro, whom he has cast as a drug-trafficking dictator in league with Washington's foes.

President Trump said on social media on Wednesday that Venezuela would use the proceeds from its oil deal with the U.S. to buy American products, including farm commodities and medicine.

Maduro, 63, pleaded not guilty this week to drug crimes when he appeared in shackles in a federal court in New York.

President Trump said on Tuesday that the U.S. would refine and sell up to 50 million barrels of crude oil stuck in Venezuela under U.S. sanctions, a first step in his plan to revive a sector long in decline despite sitting on the world's largest reserves.

To enable the deal President Trump described, the U.S. is "selectively rolling back sanctions" on Venezuelan oil, White House Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt told reporters on Wednesday.

Venezuela Acting President Delcy Rodriguez said late on Wednesday that her country is open to a deal with the United States.

"Venezuela is open to energy relations where all parties benefit," she said in a meeting with the leadership of the country's national assembly.

PDVSA confirmed it was in negotiations with the U.S. on Wednesday and said terms on the table are based on "strictly commercial transactions under terms that are legal, transparent and beneficial for both parties."

China, Russia and leftist allies of Venezuela have all denounced the U.S. attack to capture Maduro, in which dozens of Venezuelans were killed.

Source: Reuters



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