WASHINGTON, D.C. – On Wednesday, President Trump said the US seized an oil tanker off the coast of Venezuela. Venezuela is calling the seizure a robbery and “an act of international piracy”. It adds to the rising tensions between the US and Venezuela in the Caribbean.
Attorney General Pam Bondi shared a video on Wednesday showing armed forces rappelling from a helicopter onto the deck of the tanker. In a post on X, the AG said the oil tanker is used to transport sanctioned oil from Venezuela and Iran. AG Bondi adds, “for multiple years, the oil tanker has been sanctioned by the United States due to its involvement in an illicit oil shipping network supporting foreign terrorist organizations.”
President Trump didn’t dive into the details on this oil tank seizure.
“We’ve just seized a tanker on the coast of Venezuela, a large tanker, very large, largest one ever seized actually, and other things are happening, so you’ll be seeing that later and you’ll be talking about that later with some other people,” said the President on Wednesday.
The move risks further escalating tensions with Venezuela, where Trump has intensified a pressure campaign aimed at forcing President Nicolas Maduro out of power.
For the past several months, the US has launched more than 22 known strikes against alleged drug carrying boats in the Caribbean. The President said these strikes are to stop the flow of drugs into the United States, but some congressional members, mostly Democrats, worry these attacks could provoke a war; especially since the US has built up a large military presence in the Caribbean.
Senator Kirsten Gillibrand (D- NY) was asked about the strikes on alleged drug carrying boats. She has doubts about the legality the United States has on carrying out those strikes.
“I think there needs to be a thorough review because the legal memo made to support these strikes should be made public,” said Sen. Gillibrand. “The Office of Legal Counsel did a memo saying why President Trump is allowed to do this. I read the memo, I don’t agree with it. I think it does not state the law; I think it misstates the law.”
The Administration signaled that more seizures could happen.
