US Seizes Sixth Venezuelan Oil Tanker in Caribbean Amid Sanctions Crackdown

WASHINGTON/MIAMI: The United States has captured its sixth oil tanker in the Caribbean in less than two months, continuing its enforcement of sanctions against Venezuela’s oil trade, U.S. officials said Thursday.

The motor tanker Veronica was boarded without incident in a pre-dawn operation by U.S. Marines and sailors from Joint Task Force Southern Spear, supported by the Department of Homeland Security. The vessel was reportedly operating in defiance of a U.S.-imposed quarantine on sanctioned ships.

“Flawless execution,” Secretary of Homeland Security Kristi Noem wrote on social media, calling the tanker part of a “sanctioned ghost fleet” that had previously transited Venezuelan waters. “There is no outrunning American justice, period,” she added.

This latest seizure follows five previous actions since Dec. 10, including the capture of the Russian-flagged Bella 1, the Panama-flagged Centuries, and other tankers linked to Venezuela. The operations form part of a broader effort, dubbed Operation Southern Spear, to enforce a U.S.-declared blockade on Venezuelan oil.

Tensions between Washington and Caracas remain high. Earlier this month, U.S. forces conducted a military operation in Venezuela, detaining President Nicolás Maduro and his wife on drug and weapons charges, an action that Caracas condemned as illegal. Venezuelan authorities have denounced the tanker seizures as “international piracy,” while U.S. officials maintain the measures are necessary to prevent unlawful oil shipments.

Analysts say the intensified maritime crackdown underscores Washington’s determination to control Venezuelan crude exports and disrupt what it calls “shadow fleet” networks, though the operations continue to spark international debate over their legality.