Venezuela tanker being brought to US as White House considers more seizures
An oil tanker seized off the coast of Venezuela will be brought to a United States port, according to White House spokesperson Karoline Leavitt, who floated the possibility of Washington seizing more sanctioned ships in the region.
Speaking to reporters on Thursday, Leavitt addressed a US military operation a day prior to take control of the tanker. She explained that the US intends to keep the oil on the vessel, despite protest from Venezuela.
“The vessel will go to a US port, and the United States does intend to seize the oil,” Leavitt told reporters, adding that the proper legal processes would be observed.
She did not rule out similar actions in future. Observers have called Tuesday’s tanker seizure an escalation in the US pressure campaign against the government of Venezuelan leader Nicolas Maduro.
“We’re not going to stand by and watch sanctioned vessels sail the seas with black-market oil, the proceeds of which will fuel narco-terrorism of rogue and illegitimate regimes around the world,” Leavitt said.
Washington has not officially identified the tanker, but British maritime risk firm Vanguard said the vessel appeared to be the crude carrier Skipper.
The tanker was sanctioned in 2022 for allegedly helping to transport oil for Iran’s Quds Force and the Lebanese armed group Hezbollah, which is backed by Iran.
“The vessel will go to a US port, and the United States does intend to seize the oil,” Leavitt told reporters, adding that the proper legal processes would be observed.
She did not rule out similar actions in future. Observers have called Tuesday’s tanker seizure an escalation in the US pressure campaign against the government of Venezuelan leader Nicolas Maduro.
“We’re not going to stand by and watch sanctioned vessels sail the seas with black-market oil, the proceeds of which will fuel narco-terrorism of rogue and illegitimate regimes around the world,” Leavitt said.
Washington has not officially identified the tanker, but British maritime risk firm Vanguard said the vessel appeared to be the crude carrier Skipper.
The tanker was sanctioned in 2022 for allegedly helping to transport oil for Iran’s Quds Force and the Lebanese armed group Hezbollah, which is backed by Iran.
Caracas has called the seizure an act of “international piracy”.
The US has surged military assets to the Caribbean region in recent months, leading to speculation that the administration of President Donald Trump could be teeing up aggressive actions against Maduro.
