"The US is attempting to seize a Russian-flagged oil tanker with links to Venezuela after a more than two-week-long pursuit across the Atlantic and as a Russian submarine and warship were close by, two US officials have told Reuters. The seizure, which could stoke tensions with Russia, came after the tanker, originally known as the Bella-1, slipped through a U.S. maritime "blockade" of sanctioned tankers and rebuffed US coast guard efforts to board it."
"They added that Russian military vessels were in the general vicinity of the operation, including a Russian submarine. It was unclear how close the vessels were to the operation, which was taking place close to Iceland. This seizure is part of Trump's pressure campaign against Venezuela. The US coast guard first attempted to intercept the vessel, now known as the Marinera, last month, but it refused to be boarded. Since then, it has registered under a Russian flag."
"The moves come just days after US special forces swooped into Caracas before dawn on Saturday in a deadly raid to seize President Nicolas Maduro and take him to the United States. The US military turned him over to federal authorities for prosecution on charges involving alleged drug trafficking. Top Venezuelan officials have called Maduro's capture a kidnapping and have accused the U.S. of trying to steal the country's vast oil reserves, estimated to be the largest in the world."
U.S. authorities pursued and sought to seize a Russian-flagged oil tanker with links to Venezuela after a more-than-two-week chase across the Atlantic. The vessel, originally named Bella-1 and later registered as Marinera under a Russian flag, slipped through a U.S. maritime "blockade" and rebuffed U.S. Coast Guard boarding attempts. The operation was carried out by the Coast Guard and U.S. military near Iceland while Russian naval vessels, including a submarine, were reported nearby. The move is tied to pressure on Venezuela amid recent U.S. actions against President Nicolas Maduro and competing accusations over oil control.
Read at Irish Independent
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