The United States is currently engaged in an effort to seize an oil tanker linked to Venezuela, following a pursuit that has lasted over two weeks across the Atlantic Ocean.

This operation, potentially heightening tensions with Russia, unfolded after the tanker, initially named the Bella-1, managed to evade a U.S. maritime blockade aimed at sanctioned vessels. The tanker also resisted attempts by the U.S. Coast Guard to board it.

Speaking anonymously, officials revealed that the operation involves both the Coast Guard and the U.S. military. Images circulating in Russian media reportedly show helicopters nearing the ship as part of the ongoing operation.

Adding a layer of complexity, American authorities noted the presence of Russian military vessels, including a submarine, lingering nearby during the operation.

This tanker marks the latest focus of the U.S. Coast Guard since the launch of former President Donald Trump’s campaign to exert pressure on Venezuela.

The tanker is the latest to be targeted by the ⁠US Coast Guard since the start of Donald Trump’s pressure campaign against Venezuela. 

Last month, the US Coast Guard attempted to board it in the Caribbean, armed with a warrant to seize the ship over alleged breaches of US sanctions and claims it had shipped Iranian oil.

However, the tanker then abruptly changed course, renamed itself Marinera and reportedly reflagged from Guyana to Russia.

Trump last month said he had ordered a ‘blockade’ of sanctioned oil tankers entering and leaving Venezuela, a policy the government in Caracas branded ‘theft’. 

Footage posted by Russian television network RT purports to show a US Coast Guard cutter chasing the Russian-flagged oil tanker

The vessel tanker Bella 1 at Singapore Strait, after U.S. officials say the U.S. Coast Guard pursued an oil tanker in international waters near Venezuela, in this picture taken from social media on March 18, 2025

In the run-up to the US seizure of the country’s former leader Nicolás Maduro on Saturday, Trump repeatedly accused Venezuela’s government of using ships to smuggle drugs into the US.

Two US officials told CBS News on Tuesday that American forces were planning to board the Marinera and that Washington would prefer to seize the vessel rather than sink it.

Moscow’s Foreign Ministry earlier said it expects Western countries to respect principles of freedom of navigation. 

In the run-up to the US seizure of the country’s former leader Nicolás Maduro on Saturday, Trump repeatedly accused Venezuela’s government of using ships to smuggle drugs into the US.

Two US officials told CBS News on Tuesday that American forces were planning to board the Marinera and that Washington would prefer to seize the vessel rather than sink it.

Moscow’s Foreign Ministry says it expects Western countries to respect principles of freedom of navigation. 

Russia has dispatched navy assets to protect a sanctioned oil tanker as it crosses the Atlantic, amid mounting threats from the US to seize the vessel

Separately, the US Coast Guard has also intercepted another Venezuela-linked tanker in ‍Latin American waters, ⁠US officials said, as the US continues enforcing a maritime ‘blockade’ of sanctioned vessels from Venezuela. 

Footage posted earlier by Russian television network RT purports to show a US Coast Guard cutter chasing the Marinera, which started its journey in Iran.

The tanker’s north Atlantic position, combined with rough weather and long distances from land, is thought to be making any boarding operation difficult. 

AIS tracking data, which can be spoofed or falsified, suggested the ship was around 2,000km (1,200 miles) west of continental Europe on Tuesday.

More to follow.