Watch: US vows to control Venezuela’s oil ‘indefinitely’US vows to control Venezuela’s oil ‘indefinitely’

Alisha Rahaman Sarkar8 January 2026 07:00

Russia condemns U.S. seizure of oil tanker Marinera

Russia said on Wednesday that the U.S. seizure of a Russian-flagged oil tanker in the Atlantic was a violation of maritime law.

“In accordance with the 1982 UN Convention on the Law of the Sea, freedom of navigation applies in the high seas, and no state has the right to use force against vessels duly registered in the jurisdictions of other states,” the transport ministry said in a statement.

It said contact with the vessel, the Marinera, had been lost after U.S. naval forces boarded it.

A senior Russian lawmaker from the ruling United Russia party, Andrei Klishas, said the seizure was an act of outright piracy, the TASS state news agency reported.

The U.S. said on Wednesday it had seized a Russian-flagged, Venezuela-linked tanker as part of president Donald Trump’s aggressive push to dictate oil flows in the Americas and force Caracas’ socialist government to become its ally.

Alisha Rahaman Sarkar8 January 2026 06:25

Britain is now helping Trump play Big Man in the Atlantic with seizure of Russian-flagged oil tanker

British RAF spy planes and submarine hunters circled above as US special forces boarded an empty Russian-flagged Venezuelan oil tanker in the north Atlantic in an expensive performance verging on satire.

The Marinera was chased across the oceans, switched its nationality to Russian mid-journey, painted Moscow’s flag on its side and chugged along shadowed by one of Vladimir Putin’s submarines.

But the elite sailors beneath the sea offered the ageing tanker no real protection. And while the Kremlin has loudly condemned Donald Trump’s abduction of Venezuela’s president, Nicolas Maduro, the Marinera’s voyage did not end with nautical fisticuffs between two nuclear powers.

The seizure of the oil tanker Marinera and Britain’s role in it is an embarrassing farce, writes world affairs editor Sam Kiley on the Venezuelan-Colombian border

Alisha Rahaman Sarkar8 January 2026 06:12

Russia sent submarine to escort oil tanker before U.S. seizure

Russia reportedly deployed a submarine and other naval assets to escort an empty, rusting oil tanker, which was later seized by the U.S.

The vessel, formerly known as Bella 1, has spent more than two weeks trying to evade a U.S. crackdown on sanctioned tankers near Venezuela.

It failed to dock and load oil, but despite being empty, the U.S. Coast Guard pursued it into the Atlantic as part of efforts to disrupt a shadow fleet that ferries illicit oil worldwide, including black-market crude sold by Russia.

Alarmed by U.S. seizures of tankers carrying its illicit oil, Russia made the unusual move of allowing the vessel to register without inspection or formalities, the Wall Street Journal reported.

Moscow had asked Washington to stop pursuing the tanker, according to three U.S. officials. On Tuesday, the Russian foreign ministry said it was monitoring the situation “with concern,” according to state news agency RIA.

The weeks-long chase across the Atlantic ended on Wednesday morning when the U.S. Coast Guard and U.S. military special forces, bearing a judicial seizure warrant, apprehended the Marinera crude oil tanker.

Alisha Rahaman Sarkar8 January 2026 06:00

In pics: Oil tankers seized by the U.S.(Hakon Rimmereid)(X/@Southcom)

Alisha Rahaman Sarkar8 January 2026 05:40

All we know about blacklisted supertanker seized by US

U.S. forces have seized a sanctioned Venezuelan oil tanker being escorted by Russian naval ships in the North Atlantic, days after the dramatic capture of President Nicolas Maduro.

The military and Coast Guard intercepted the Marinera tanker on Wednesday in waters north west of Scotland, after a two-week chase.

The vessel had evaded a U.S. blockade of sanctioned oil tankers near Venezuela, a measure the administration had implemented shortly before an elite unit seized Maduro in the early hours of Saturday.

Alisha Rahaman Sarkar8 January 2026 05:21

U.S. to exit dozens of international organisations

President Donald Trump has signed an executive order withdrawing the U.S. from 66 organizations, agencies and commissions, marking the country further retreating from global cooperation.

The order follows Trump’s instruction for his administration to review participation in and funding for all international organisations, including those affiliated with the UN.

Most of the targets are U.N.-related agencies, commissions and advisory panels that focus on climate, labour and other issues that this administration has categorised as catering to diversity and “woke” initiatives.

Trump’s decision to withdraw from organisations that foster cooperation among nations to address global challenges comes as his administration launched military efforts in Venezuela and issued threats to Greenland and other nations, which have rattled allies and adversaries alike.

Alisha Rahaman Sarkar8 January 2026 05:00

Trump invites Colombian president to White House

U.S. president Donald Trump has abruptly changed his tone about his Colombian counterpart, Gustavo Petro, saying that the two had exchanged a friendly phone call and that he’d invited the leader of the South American country to meet at the White House.

“It was a Great Honor to speak with the President of Colombia, Gustavo Petro, who called to explain the situation of drugs and other disagreements that we have had,” Trump posted on Truth Social.

“I appreciated his call and tone, and look forward to meeting him in the near future.”

Alisha Rahaman Sarkar8 January 2026 04:50

US military could be deployed in Venezuela to protect workers

White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt said that the US military could be deployed in Venezuela to help protect oil workers sent there by American oil companies.

Asked about how the government could reassure the US oil companies that their workers would be safe, Leavitt confirmed that troops may be involved.

“The president, of course, reserves the right to use the military if necessary,” she said.

Mike Bedigan8 January 2026 04:10

US says it will control Venezuelan oil sales indefinitely

U.S. officials have claimed that the Trump administration needs to control Venezuela’s oil sales and revenue indefinitely to stabilize that country’s economy, rebuild its oil sector and ensure it acts in America’s interests.

The comments reflect the importance of crude oil to President Donald Trump’s strategy in Venezuela after U.S. forces ousted the country’s leader, Nicolas Maduro, in a raid on the capital Caracas on Saturday.

“We need to have that leverage and that control of those oil sales to drive the changes that simply must happen in Venezuela,” U.S. energy secretary Chris Wright said at the Goldman Sachs Energy, CleanTech & Utilities Conference in Miami.

He said the revenues would be used to stabilize Venezuela’s economy and eventually to repay oil majors Exxon Mobil and ConocoPhillips for losses when their assets were nationalized by former President Hugo Chavez nearly two decades ago.

U.S. vice president JD Vance said that controlling Venezuela’s oil meant controlling the country.

“We control the energy resources, and we tell the regime: ‘You’re allowed to sell the oil so long as you serve America’s national interest; you’re not allowed to sell it if you can’t serve America’s national interest,” he told the Fox News.

Alisha Rahaman Sarkar8 January 2026 04:00