{"id":625902,"date":"2025-12-11T08:32:25","date_gmt":"2025-12-11T08:32:25","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/625902\/"},"modified":"2025-12-11T08:32:25","modified_gmt":"2025-12-11T08:32:25","slug":"venezuela-calls-trump-admins-seizure-of-tanker-an-act-of-international-piracy-and-claims-its-being-targeted-for-oil","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/625902\/","title":{"rendered":"Venezuela calls Trump admin\u2019s seizure of tanker \u2018an act of international piracy\u2019 and claims its being targeted for oil"},"content":{"rendered":"

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Venezuela has accused the U.S. of engaging in an \u201cinternational act of piracy\u201d after one of its oil<\/a> tankers was seized by the U.S. military. <\/p>\n

\u201cUnder these circumstances, the true reasons for the prolonged aggression against Venezuela have finally been revealed\u2026 It has always been about our natural resources, our oil, our energy, the resources that belong exclusively to the Venezuelan<\/a> people,\u201d the Venezuelan government said in a statement. <\/p>\n

The seizure marks the latest escalation<\/a> in President Donald Trump\u2019s<\/a> targeting of Venezuela<\/a> and its leader, President Nicolas Maduro.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe\u2019ve just seized a tanker<\/a> on the coast of Venezuela,\u201d Trump told reporters on Wednesday. \u201cLargest one ever seized actually. And other things are happening.\u201d<\/p>\n

The president didn\u2019t supply additional information, but said that the vessel was interdicted for \u201ca very good reason.\u201d When asked what would happen to the ship, he said, \u201cWe keep it, I guess.\u201d<\/p>\n

\"Attorney<\/p>\n

open image in gallery<\/p>\n

Attorney General Pam Bondi posted a video of the seizure on X\/Twitter on Wednesday night, calling the ship a \u2018crude oil tanker used to transport sanctioned oil from Venezuela and Iran\u2019 (US Attorney General Pam Bondi\u2019s X account)<\/p>\n

Attorney General Pam Bondi posted a video of the seizure on X\/Twitter on Wednesday evening, calling the ship a \u201ccrude oil tanker used to transport sanctioned oil from Venezuela and Iran.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cFor multiple years, the oil tanker has been sanctioned by the United States due to its involvement in an illicit oil shipping network supporting foreign terrorist organizations,\u201d Bondi wrote<\/a>. <\/p>\n

\u201cThis seizure, completed off the coast of Venezuela, was conducted safely and securely \u2014 and our investigation alongside the Department of Homeland Security to prevent the transport of sanctioned oil continues.\u201d<\/p>\n

\"Caracas<\/p>\n

open image in gallery<\/p>\n

Caracas responded to the seizure on Wednesday evening, calling it an \u2018international act of piracy\u2019 (US Attorney General Pam Bondi\u2019s X account)<\/p>\n

The DHS X account gloated about the seizure in a post. <\/p>\n

\u201cKNOCKOUT. If you threaten our nation, or break the law, there is no place on land or sea where we won\u2019t find you. Thank you to the brave service members from @USCG, @ICEGOV, @FBI, @DeptofWar, and @TheJusticeDept,\u201d the agency wrote<\/a>. <\/p>\n

Two unnamed officials told Reuters that the operation<\/a> was conducted by the U.S. Coast Guard. They didn\u2019t provide the name of the vessel or where exactly the operation took place.<\/p>\n

The intercepted tanker had been sanctioned<\/a> by the U.S. government, sources familiar with the matter told Bloomberg News. The seizure could make it more difficult for the oil-rich nation to conduct trade, as shippers may be wary of handling its cargo. The majority of Venezuelan oil is sent to China.<\/p>\n

After the maneuver was revealed, oil prices rose<\/a>, according to CNBC. Brent crude futures ticked up 27 cents, while U.S. West Texas Intermediate crude futures increased 21 cents.<\/p>\n

\"U.S.<\/p>\n

open image in gallery<\/p>\n

U.S. forces have seized an oil tanker off the coast of Venezuela, marking the latest escalation in Trump\u2019s targeting of the Latin American nation (Reuters)<\/p>\n

Spokespeople for the White House and the Pentagon did not immediately respond to requests for comment from The Independent.<\/p>\n

The naval operation comes as the Trump administration is ramping up pressure on President Maduro, whom it accuses of facilitating illegal drug trafficking. <\/p>\n

Since September, the Pentagon has launched around two dozen strikes on alleged drug boats in the Caribbean, killing at least 87 people. At the same time, the U.S. has amassed a fleet of warships near Venezuela, marking the largest naval buildup in the region in decades. And, in October, the Republican president authorized the CIA<\/a> to undertake covert action inside Venezuela.<\/p>\n

\u201cI think you\u2019re going to find that this is war<\/a>,\u201d Trump said last week. \u201cAnd very soon we\u2019re going to start doing it on land too,\u201d referring to the naval strikes.<\/p>\n

Maduro has denied that his country is involved in the illegal drug trade and has accused the Trump administration of \u201cfabricating a new eternal war<\/a>.\u201d He\u2019s also said the real motivation behind Trump\u2019s actions is to force him out of office and take control of Venezuela\u2019s vast oil reserves. In response, he\u2019s called on the nation\u2019s citizens to unite against American aggression and deployed troops, aircraft and ships to the coast.<\/p>\n

\"Venezuelan<\/p>\n

open image in gallery<\/p>\n

Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro has accused the U.S. of \u2018fabricating a new eternal war\u2019 (AP)<\/p>\n

The administration\u2019s actions in the region have prompted a wave of criticism from Democratic lawmakers.<\/p>\n

Virginia Senator Tim Kaine described the Pentagon\u2019s strikes in the Caribbean as illegal and warned that they risk dragging a conflict-weary nation into yet another foreign war. \u201cThe American people have no interest in stumbling into an illegal new war<\/a> that would place the lives of our servicemembers at risk,\u201d he said in late November.<\/p>\n

A handful of Republicans, too, have expressed opposition. Last week, Kentucky Senator Rand Paul<\/a> called on Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth \u2014 who has faced heightened scrutiny over a September 2 attack\u2014 to testify under oath about the boat strikes.<\/p>\n

\u201cI think that Congress, if they had any kind of gumption at all, would not be allowing this administration to summarily execute people that are suspected of a crime,\u201d he told The Independent.<\/p>\n

Many Republicans, though, have stood in lockstep with the administration. In November, Oklahoma Senator Markwayne Mullin said Trump is \u201cprotecting the United States by being very proactive<\/a>.\u201d<\/p>\n

Public opinion on Trump\u2019s military maneuvers is mixed. Most Americans, 53 percent, approve of using military force to attack vessels suspected of trafficking drugs into the U.S., according to a November CBS News survey. At the same time, 70 percent<\/a> said they would oppose taking military action in Venezuela.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"Your support helps us to tell the story From reproductive rights to climate change to Big Tech, The…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":625903,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[5311],"tags":[49,978,659],"class_list":{"0":"post-625902","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-united-states","8":"tag-united-states","9":"tag-us","10":"tag-usa"},"share_on_mastodon":{"url":"https:\/\/pubeurope.com\/@uk\/115700010931563681","error":""},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/625902","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=625902"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/625902\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/625903"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=625902"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=625902"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=625902"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}