"Two unnamed US officials told the Reuters news agency on Wednesday the operation is being carried out by the Coast Guard and US military. Russian state broadcaster RT reported it appears US forces are trying to board Venezuela-linked oil tanker Marinera from a helicopter, and published an image of a helicopter hovering near the ship. RT cited an unnamed source as saying a US coast guard vessel has been following the tanker and an attempt to seize it during a storm had already been carried out."
"Tracking data from MarineTraffic showed the tanker nearing Iceland's exclusive economic zone on Wednesday. Reuters reported that a Russian submarine and warship were in the vicinity as the operation was taking place. Reporting from Moscow, journalist Dmitry Medvedenko explained that there have been at least two attempts in the past weeks of this cat-and-mouse game to seize this tanker. The Russian government has not confirmed whether it sent any vessels or submarines to accompany the Marinera, Medvedenko said."
US forces attempted to seize the Russian-flagged oil tanker Marinera, linked to Venezuela, after a weeks-long pursuit. Two unnamed US officials said the operation involves the Coast Guard and US military. A Russian state broadcaster published an image of a helicopter hovering near the ship and said US forces appeared to be trying to board the tanker by helicopter. The Marinera, originally Bella-1, slipped through a US maritime blockade of sanctioned tankers and rebuffed Coast Guard boarding attempts. US officials say the tanker is part of a shadow fleet moving oil for Venezuela, Russia and Iran in violation of US sanctions. Tracking data showed the tanker nearing Iceland's exclusive economic zone as a Russian submarine and warship were reported nearby.
Read at www.aljazeera.com
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