The U.S. government has filed for court warrants to seize dozens more tankers linked to the Venezuelan oil trade, four sources familiar with the matter said, as Washington consolidates control of oil shipments in and out of the South American country.The U.S. military and Coast Guard have seized five vessels in recent weeks in international waters that were either carrying Venezuelan oil or have
The United States is attempting to seize a Russian-flagged oil tanker with links to Venezuela after a more than two-week-long pursuit across the Atlantic and as a Russian submarine and warship were close by, two U.S. officials told Reuters on Wednesday.The seizure, which could stoke tensions with Russia, came after the tanker, originally known as the Bella-1, slipped through a U.S.
The White House has ordered U.S. military forces to focus almost exclusively on enforcing a "quarantine" of Venezuelan oil for at least the next two months, a U.S. official told Reuters, indicating Washington is currently more interested in using economic rather than military means to pressure Caracas.
The U.S. government has sold for scrap two sanctioned oil tankers that were seized in the days after Washington's raid on Venezuela, Lloyd's List reported on Monday.Dubai-headquartered vessel recycling firm Global Marketing Systems purchased the tankers last month for an undisclosed sum, according to the report.
The U.S. seized a Russian-flagged oil tanker that was being shadowed by a Russian submarine on Wednesday, after pursuing it for more than two weeks across the Atlantic as part of Washington's efforts to block Venezuelan oil exports, U.S. officials said.It appeared to be the first time in recent memory that the U.S. military has seized a Russian-flagged vessel.
Russia said on Wednesday that the U.S. seizure of a Russian-flagged oil tanker in the Atlantic was a violation of maritime law, and a senior lawmaker described it as "outright piracy".Russia's Transport Ministry said contact with the vessel, the Marinera, had been lost after U.S. naval forces boarded it near Iceland as part of efforts to block oil exports from Venezuela.
The U.S. seized an empty Russian-flagged, Venezuela-linked oil tanker in the Atlantic Ocean on Wednesday as part of President Donald Trump's aggressive push to dictate oil flows in the Americas and force Venezuela's socialist government to become an ally.After capturing Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro in an attack on Caracas on Saturday, the U.S.
The U.S. Coast Guard is waiting for additional forces to arrive before potentially attempting to board and seize a Venezuela-linked oil tanker it has been pursuing since Sunday, a U.S. official and a source familiar with the matter told Reuters.The ship, which maritime groups have identified as the Bella 1, has refused to be boarded by the Coast Guard.
Tanker loading in Venezuela dwindled on Monday, with most ships moving oil cargoes only between domestic ports following U.S. action against two more ships and as state-run energy company PDVSA struggles to recover from a cyberattack, according to tracking data and sources.The U.S.
Dubai-based GMS has won U.S. government approval to scrap two sanctions-hit oil tankers it acquired, months after securing agreements to recycle four sanctions-hit container ships, the ship recycler told Reuters.The use of so-called shadow fleet tankers has surged in recent years, with hundreds of tankers transporting Iranian or Russian oil with limited scrutiny, insurance or safety checks.
Panama's maritime authority on Thursday said it had canceled in January of last year the flag of the M Sophia, a Venezuela-linked oil tanker seized by the U.S. military this week.The U.S. military's Southern Command on Wednesday said it had intercepted the M Sophia before dawn, and described it as a "stateless, sanctioned dark fleet motor tanker.
The UK Ministry of Defence (MoD0 announced on Wednesday that Britain had provided assistance to the United States during its operation to capture a "Russian flagged oil tanker" in the North Atlantic.After pursuing the tanker for over a month across the Atlantic, Washington was able to seize the vessel on Wednesday.