The U.S. military has seized its sixth oil tanker in the Caribbean Sea, claiming it violated President Trump's sanctions.
Foreign news agencies reported that U.S. forces seized the oil tanker named “Veroniko” in the Caribbean Sea in the early hours of Thursday, 15 Jan 2026 GMT+7. This is the sixth tanker seized by the U.S. in recent months, as part of efforts to control Venezuela's oil exports.
The U.S. Southern Command stated the vessel was targeted for violating President Donald Trump's "sanctioned vessel quarantine" order. Officials boarded the Veroniko without any violent incident.
“The only oil allowed to leave Venezuela is that which is properly coordinated and lawful,” the Southern Command said.
Since U.S. military operations began against Venezuela and detained President Nicolás Maduro earlier this month, Donald Trump announced plans to utilize Venezuela's vast oil reserves.
According to TankerTrackers.com, which monitors crude oil shipments using satellite data and other sources, the Veroniko, a crude oil tanker flying the Guyana flag, departed Venezuelan waters without cargo in early January.
Data from the International Maritime Organization (IMO) shows the vessel was previously registered in Russia under different names.
This incident indicates that U.S. measures to crack down on what they call the “dark fleet,” comprising more than 1,000 vessels illegally transporting sanctioned oil, will continue as the U.S. works with Venezuela’s interim government to control the Latin American nation's oil sales.
The operation occurred just one day after a U.S. official claimed the first sale of Venezuelan oil, valued at up to $500 million, was completed.
The seizure of oil tankers is significantly affecting Venezuela's oil exports.
The Wall Street Journal, citing data from Kpler, a maritime transport analytics provider, reported that Venezuela's crude oil loading volumes in January fell to about half the usual level.
Kpler also noted that the only tankers loading crude at Venezuelan ports are those headed to the U.S. and Venezuelan refineries, some of which are located far from oil extraction sites.
/foreign news updates:https://www.thairath.co.th/news/foreign
Source:bbc