Washington (EFE).- United States forces intercepted on Wednesday a sanctioned oil tanker that had fled before reaching Venezuela after tracking it in the Atlantic for nearly three weeks.
The US military command in Europe confirmed the seizure of the Marinera, formerly known as the Bella 1, on X. The post specified that the Departments of Justice and Homeland Security carried out the operation in the North Atlantic in coordination with the Pentagon.
The US Coast Guard intercepted the vessel “for violations of US sanctions” and “pursuant to a warrant issued by a US federal court” after tracking it with the USCGC Munro.
“One of these tankers, Motor Tanker Bella I, has been trying to evade the Coast Guard for weeks, even changing its flag and painting a new name on the hull while being pursued, in a desperate and failed attempt to escape justice,” said Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem in an X post where she shared images of the operation.
In December 2025, the ship repelled a US attempt to board it in Caribbean waters and headed into the Atlantic.
The Marinera began its voyage in Iran with the name Bella 1, and the flag of Guyana, and it came under the protection of the Russian flag during its pursuit by the US.
According to the Wall Street Journal, as well as two US officials who spoke with CBS News, Russia sent a submarine and other military vessels to escort the ship, linked to companies with ties to Hezbollah, to a Russian port in response to the threat of its confiscation by the US.
Moscow also requested Washington to stop the pursuit
A US official cited by The New York Times reported that the ship’s crew offered no resistance at the time of boarding and confirmed that US Coast Guard personnel did not spot any Russian vessels nearby.
Since Dec. 21, the Coast Guard has tried to seize the ship, which was en route to load oil in Venezuela, as part of the US’s ongoing blockade of tankers transporting Venezuelan crude, which continues even after the capture and transfer of Venezuelan President Nicolás Maduro to New York.
The ship failed to dock in Venezuela or load oil. Although the vessel is empty, the US Coast Guard pursued it into the Atlantic in an attempt to take action against a fleet of oil tankers transporting illicit crude around the world, known as the ghost fleet, including crude oil sold on the black market by Russia.
The aforementioned would be the third tanker linked to Venezuela that the US has seized since pressure intensified on Maduro’s government, now in prison, indicted on narcoterrorism charges. EFE
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