The US has imposed fresh sanctions on six more ships said to be carrying Venezuelan oil, a day after seizing a tanker off the country's coast.
Sanctions have also been placed on some of Venezuelan President Nicolás Maduro's relatives and businesses associated with what Washington calls his illegitimate regime.
White House Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt told reporters that the seized vessel, called the Skipper, had been involved in 'illicit oil shipping' and would be taken to an American port.
Caracas has described it as an act of 'international piracy.'
This marks a sharp escalation in the US pressure campaign against Maduro. The Trump administration has accused Venezuela of funnelling narcotics into the US. Venezuela, home to some of the world's largest proven oil reserves, has countered by alleging that Washington is attempting to steal its resources. Maduro previously stated that Venezuela would never become an 'oil colony.'
Defending the US military action, Leavitt stated that the US was committed to both 'stopping the flow of illegal drugs' and enforcing sanctions.
She did not indicate whether more seizures of ships were planned but emphasized that the US would not permit sanctioned vessels to transport black market oil, potentially funding narco-terrorism worldwide.
Moreover, the US Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent noted the sanctions are intended to confront Maduro's 'dictatorial and brutal control'. The sanctions target not only the shipping vessels but also businesses linked to Maduro’s regime.
Meanwhile, the Venezuelan government vehemently condemned the action. Interior Minister Diosdado Cabello criticized the US, referring to them as 'murderers, thieves, pirates.'
The US military action utilized forces such as the USS Gerald Ford, positioned in the Caribbean Sea in advance of the raid.
Video footage released by the White House depicts US soldiers descending onto the Skipper from a helicopter during the seizure.
This situation follows previous sanctions imposed by the US on the Skipper for alleged connections with oil smuggling that benefited Hezbollah and other forces opposed to the US.
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