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Overview
- President Trump confirmed the ship's capture off Venezuela and said the cargo could be kept, as the Justice Department released video of Coast Guard teams fast‑roping aboard.
- U.S. authorities said the Coast Guard, FBI and Homeland Security led the interdiction with military support, describing a law‑enforcement action based on a federal seizure warrant.
- Maritime risk firms and U.S. media identified the tanker as the Skipper, previously sanctioned as the Adisa, with a history of falsified tracking data and sanctioned crude movements.
- Venezuela condemned the operation as piracy and theft, Cuba and Russia voiced support for Nicolás Maduro, and U.S. lawmakers in both parties pressed for briefings on the legal basis and objectives.
- Oil futures rose after the seizure, with analysts warning the move could chill shipping of Venezuela’s roughly 900,000 barrels a day of exports.