A U.S. official tells ABC Information that the U.S. Coast Guard is “in lively pursuit of a sanctioned darkish fleet vessel that’s a part of Venezuela’s unlawful sanctions evasion.”
“It’s flying a false flag and below a judicial seizure order,” the official added.
The motion comes after the U.S. Coast Guard seized an oil tanker off the coast of Venezuela on Saturday, simply ten days after the seizure of a sanctioned oil tanker.
Not like that first vessel seized, the tanker seized Saturday is just not on any sanctions record maintained by the U.S., EU, U.Ok. or U.N., in keeping with Kpler, a knowledge agency that tracks transportation and logistics networks.
In a display screen seize from a video launched by Secretary Kristi Noem, the US Coast Guard apprehends an oil tanker that was final docked in Venezuela, on Dec. 20, 2025.
@Sec_Noem
Homeland Safety Secretary Kristi Noem confirmed Saturday’s operation in a submit on social media, saying that the Coast Guard “apprehended” the tanker with assist from the Division of Protection in a pre-dawn motion. She mentioned the tanker had final made port in Venezuela.
“The USA will proceed to pursue the illicit motion of sanctioned oil that’s used to fund narco terrorism within the area,” Noem mentioned within the submit. “We’ll discover you, and we are going to cease you.”
Final week, President Trump threatened to impose what he known as “a complete and full blockade of all sanctioned oil tankers” touring to and from Venezuela – a transfer that would devastate the Venezuelan financial system, since oil exports are the lifeblood of President Nicholas Maduro’s regime.
In response to Trump’s announcement, Maduro mentioned Venezuela would proceed to commerce oil and that Trump’s “intention” is regime change.
“This can simply not occur, by no means, by no means, by no means – Venezuela won’t ever be a colony of something or anybody, by no means,” Maduro mentioned.
The U.S. has amassed the biggest navy presence within the Caribbean in many years, together with the world’s largest plane provider.
The Pentagon additionally has to date struck 28 alleged drug boats within the Caribbean and Japanese Pacific, killing a minimum of 100 folks, with out offering any public proof that the boats have been carrying unlawful medication or figuring out these killed.
