WASHINGTON (USA) (ITALPRESS) – The United States has seized two oil tankers linked to Venezuela. It is the Russian oil tanker Marinera, which transported Venezuelan oil in the Atlantic, to which at a later time the oil tanker Sophia, which was located in international waters in the Caribbean Sea.
First, a Russian oil tanker, the M/V Bella 1, which transported Venezuelan oil, subjected to sanctions “that are valid all over the world”. The American Secretary of War said this, Pete Hegseth, on his profile X. Hegseth confirmed the seizure of a Russian oil tanker in the North Atlantic. Previously the US Command in Europe (Us European Command) had confirmed the seizure of the ship for violations of US sanctions against Venezuelan crude oil. “The Department of Justice and the Department of Homeland Security, in coordination with the Department of Defense, announced today the seizure of the M/V Bella 1 for violations of US sanctions”, reads in a post on X. According to some reconstructions, the ship had been in the Washington sight for weeks for violation of sanction regimes.
The tanker, considered devoid of an effective nationality and accused of beating flags of convenience, would be used for the transport of Iranian and Venezuelan oil destined to the black market, for the benefit of subjects considered hostile or linked to organizations designated as terrorists. The operation, coordinated by the U.S. Coast Guard as part of the powers attributed by federal legislation, saw the deployment of a wide range of military assets. In addition to naval units and helicopters used for the attempt to join, Washington has deployed P-8 Poseidon marine patrol aircraft, specialized in the anti-submarine struggle, and AC-130J support aircraft, used for surveillance and protection of the operating area. The aim was to ensure the control of the ship and allow the boarding of technical and command personnel to safely lead it to a designated port.
From the legal point of view, the case raises complex questions. The Russian Federation has in fact placed the stock of the oil tanker with its own military units, including the presence of a submarine, claiming the need to protect a ship that in the meantime was registered under the Russian flag. According to diplomatic sources, the Russian move was motivated by the desire to avoid a forced seizure in the high sea and to protect its interests, without intentions declared to be direct ing with the U.S. forces. The international maritime law allows the intervention against ships considered apolidi or involved in illegal activities, but the presence of a military escort of a sovereign state and the change of flag in course of navigation make the operation particularly delicate, both on the legal level and on the political one.
SEQUESTRATA ANCHE LA PETROLIERA “SOPHIA” NEI CARAIBI
The U.S. authorities also seized the Sophia oil tanker, which was in international waters in the Caribbean Sea. The Southern Command of the United States reported this in a post on X. The Department of Defense, in coordination with the Department of Internal Security, intercepted an oil tanker in the hours before dawn. “The intercepted ship, M/T Sophia, was in international waters and was engaged in illegal activities in the Caribbean Sea,” the post states.
– photos of repertoire IPA Agency –
(ITALPRESS).
