U.S. forces seize 2 more sanctioned oil tankers on the Atlantic

The United States has seized an oil tanker that it had been pursuing for weeks across the Atlantic, the U.S. military said Wednesday, alleging that the vessel was in violation of U.S. sanctions.

U.S. European Command said the ship was seized in a joint operation by the Departments of Defense and Homeland Security.

“The United States continues to enforce the blockade against all dark fleet vessels illegally transporting Venezuelan oil to finance illicit activity, stealing from the Venezuelan people,” Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth said in a post on X.

“Only legitimate and lawful energy commerce — as determined by the U.S. — will be permitted.”

The vessel, which changed its name from the Bella 1 to the Marinera and registered under a Russian flag last week, had been tracked by the U.S. Coast Guard since December.

Russia’s Ministry of Transport chastised the capture of the Marinera in a statement, saying that the ship was “granted temporary permission” to sail under the Russian flag.

“In accordance with the provisions of the 1982 U.N. Convention on the Law of the Sea, the high seas are governed by the principle of freedom of navigation, and no state has the right to use force against vessels duly registered under the jurisdiction of other states,” the ministry said.

U.S. Southern Command announced the seizure early Wednesday of another vessel, the Sophia, in international waters near the Caribbean. The military said the Coast Guard was escorting the ship to the U.S.

Both ships were either last docked in Venezuela or en route to the country, U.S. Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem said on X. The Marinera had been “trying to evade the Coast Guard for weeks, even changing its flag and painting a new name on the hull while being pursued, in a desperate and failed attempt to escape justice,” Noem continued.

The U.S. has now seized at least four sanctioned oil tankers in a bid to choke Venezuela’s oil exports and exert economic pressure on the country. After the capture of Venezuelan President Nicolás Maduro on Saturday, President Donald Trump spoke repeatedly about Venezuela’s vast oil reserves and vowed to expand its oil industry with the help of U.S. companies.

He also said Tuesday that Venezuela will send 30 million to 50 million barrels of oil to the U.S., and that proceeds from those sales will “benefit” people in both countries.