In a dramatic escalation of tensions, United States military forces have intercepted and seized a massive oil tanker off the Venezuelan coast, an operation personally confirmed by President Donald Trump. The seizure occurred amidst a substantial US naval deployment in the Caribbean region that Caracas has characterized as preparation for regime change.
US Attorney General Pam Bondi released operational footage showing special forces troops rappelling from helicopters onto the vessel’s deck before securing the ship’s bridge with raised rifles. President Trump described the captured tanker as ‘very large—the largest one ever seized’ during remarks to reporters at a White House business roundtable.
The Justice Department identified the vessel as part of an ‘illicit oil shipping network’ allegedly transporting sanctioned petroleum from both Venezuela and Iran. US media reports indicate the tanker was destined for Cuba before being intercepted by Coast Guard personnel.
Venezuela’s foreign ministry issued a fierce condemnation, denouncing the operation as ‘blatant theft and an act of international piracy’ that was publicly celebrated by the US president. The incident occurs alongside heightened political tensions involving Venezuelan opposition leader Maria Corina Machado, who recently accepted the Nobel Peace Prize in Oslo while in hiding from Maduro’s government.
The Trump administration has intensified pressure on Caracas in recent months, deploying warships and conducting lethal strikes against more than twenty alleged drug trafficking vessels in the region. Washington has formally designated Maduro’s government as a ‘narco-terrorist’ organization and accused him of stealing the 2024 presidential election.
Venezuela has responded by swearing in thousands of new soldiers and accusing the United States of attempting to seize control of its substantial oil reserves through military aggression disguised as counter-narcotics operations.