Overview
- A Coast Guard tactical team conducted a pre-dawn boarding and seized the motor tanker Veronica in the Caribbean, the sixth seizure in the ongoing campaign and the fourth reported since Nicolás Maduro’s capture.
- U.S. authorities say the ship had previously transited Venezuelan waters and was operating in violation of a quarantine enforced on sanctioned tankers.
- The operation was coordinated with the Defense, State and Justice departments, with Marines and sailors from Joint Task Force Southern Spear supporting under Operation Southern Spear.
- The stepped-up enforcement follows earlier takedowns that included the Marinera (formerly Bella 1), Olina, M/T Sophia, Centuries and Skipper/Adisa, and came a day after officials confirmed the first sale of seized Venezuelan oil valued at about $500 million.
- The maritime push has triggered diplomatic friction with Russia over the Marinera case and unfolded as President Donald Trump engaged Venezuelan interim authorities, including a planned meeting with María Corina Machado and a call with Delcy Rodríguez.