Major action by US Army off the coast of Venezuela, oil tanker seized (Photo- Reuters)
Digital Desk, New Delhi. The ongoing tension between America and Venezuela is not showing any sign of abating. Trump is continuously increasing pressure on Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro. American troops are continuously taking action near the Venezuelan coast. US troops have seized an oil tanker off the Venezuelan coast for the second time in less than two weeks.
In fact, amid increasing pressure from Trump on Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro, on Saturday, American troops seized another tanker off the coast of Venezuela.
American Home Minister Kristi Noem has confirmed this action on social media platform X. The United States will continue to pursue the illicit movement of contraband oil that is used to fund narco-terrorism in the region, he wrote in a post on Twitter. The action was carried out by the US Coast Guard with support from the Pentagon and is part of a broader effort to disrupt Venezuelan oil exports and pressure Maduro to step down.
Three officials, who spoke to Al Jazeera's sources on condition of anonymity, did not disclose the location of the operation, but said the coast guard was leading the operation. Two officials also confirmed this operation. An official said the action was consensual boarding, in which the tanker voluntarily stopped and allowed US forces to board.
According to Al Jazeera, an embargo is in effect after US forces seized a banned oil tanker off the Venezuelan coast last week, requiring loaded ships carrying millions of barrels of oil to remain in Venezuelan waters rather than risk seizure.
Venezuelan crude oil exports have fallen sharply since the first seizure. While many ships bringing oil from Venezuela are subject to sanctions, other ships bringing Venezuelan oil and crude from Iran and Russia are exempt from sanctions. (With inputs from news agency ANI)
Also read- US sieges Venezuela, Maduro government declared a terrorist organization; Ban on movement of oil tankers
Also read- Trump declares Venezuelan government a foreign terrorist organization, orders blockade of banned oil tankers