[News] Oil tanker seized by US near Venezuela owned by China
Anti-Imperialist News
news at freedomarchives.org
Sat Dec 20 20:42:13 EST 2025
english.almayadeen.net
<https://english.almayadeen.net/news/politics/oil-tanker-seized-by-us-near-venezuela-owned-by-china--bloom>
Oil tanker seized by US near Venezuela owned by China: Bloomberg
Al Mayadeen English
December 20, 2025
------------------------------------------------------------------------
The US seizes a China-owned oil tanker off Venezuela’s coast, escalating
tensions. Caracas condemns the act as piracy and vows to file a
complaint at the UN Security Council.
* An image showing the oil tanker seized by the United States on
December 20, 2025, near Venezuela, in a video published by Homeland
Security Secretary Kristi Noem (X/@Sec_Noem)
<https://alpha-en-media.almayadeen.net/media/image/2025/12/20/e68af950-465b-4b31-9dbe-3ee0cf518d6a.png?width=1000>
An image showing the oil tanker seized by the United States on
December 20, 2025, near Venezuela, in a video published by Homeland
Security Secretary Kristi Noem (X/@Sec_Noem)
The United States has seized a Panama-flagged oil tanker owned by China
off the coast of Venezuela, in a move that escalates ongoing tensions
between Washington and Caracas, according to a report by /Bloomberg/.
/Reuters /on Saturday reported that US forces have carried out another
maritime vessel capture
<https://english.almayadeen.net/news/politics/us-pirates-another-tanker-near-venezuela>
near Venezuela, seizing a vessel in international waters in what Caracas
said was a direct assault on its sovereignty and a deliberate attempt to
strangle the country's economy.
Three US officials confirmed the operation, which comes only days after
President Donald Trump publicly ordered "A TOTAL AND COMPLETE BLOCKADE
<https://english.almayadeen.net/news/politics/trump-does-not-rule-out-war-with-venezuela-as-us-pressure-gr>
OF ALL SANCTIONED OIL TANKERS going into, and out of, Venezuela."
The White House has refused to provide coordinates of the interception,
offering no transparency regarding the scope or legal grounding of the raid.
Although Washington continues to frame its actions as part of a "war on
narcotics," the operations being carried out bear little resemblance to
standard counter-drug missions. Instead, they align closely with a
sweeping sanctions-enforcement strategy targeting Venezuela’s energy
sector, the backbone of its economy and the core of its state revenue.
Caracas to submit UNSC complaint
Venezuelan officials have condemned the seizure as an act of piracy and
economic warfare. Caracas maintains that Washington’s actions are part
of a broader campaign
<https://english.almayadeen.net/news/politics/maduro-touts-global-respect-for-venezuela-s-sovereignty>
to overthrow the government and plunder the country’s natural resources
under the pretext of "fighting drug trafficking."
The Venezuelan government vowed that the hijacking of the ship by the
Americans would not go unpunished, announcing its intention to file a
formal complaint at the United Nations Security Council.
US actions have had immediate operational and economic consequences.
Venezuelan oil exports have reportedly fallen sharply
<https://english.almayadeen.net/news/politics/venezuela-demands--35bln-in-reparations-from-us-for-oil-thef>
following the seizure of a sanctioned tanker, with shipping data showing
that most crude cargoes are stuck or avoiding Venezuelan ports. Tankers
scheduled to load Venezuelan crude have been rerouted or turned back to
avoid US naval patrols, creating severe logistical disruptions.
The country’s oil storage capacity is rapidly filling, raising the risk
that PDVSA may soon have to curtail production if export bottlenecks
persist. Markets have already responded with short-term price
volatility, reflecting supply concerns linked to the US blockade in the
Caribbean.
*Read more: Trump does not rule out war with Venezuela as US pressure
grows
<https://english.almayadeen.net/news/politics/trump-does-not-rule-out-war-with-venezuela-as-us-pressure-gr>*
*___________________________*
telesurenglish.net
<https://www.telesurenglish.net/venezuela-rejects-us-theft-of-new-ship-with-venezuelan-crude-oil/>
Venezuela Rejects US Theft of New Ship With Venezuelan Crude Oil -
teleSUR English
teleSUR English
December 20, 2025
------------------------------------------------------------------------
Image of the Video Showing the Theft and Kidnapping of the Ship Carrying
Venezuelan Crude. Photo: X-Account of United States Security Secretary,
Kisti Noem.
------------------------------------------------------------------------
December 20, 2025 Hour: 7:47 pm
Venezuela denounces the theft and kidnapping of a second Venezuelan
private ship loaded with oil and the disappearance of its crew, acts
perpetrated by US military in international waters this Saturday.
*/RELATED:/*
*/Venezuelan Pdvsa Exceeds Oil Production Target With 1,200,000 Barrels
per Day
<https://www.telesurenglish.net/venezuelan-pdvsa-exceeds-oil-production-target-with-1200000-barrels-per-day/>/*
“The Bolivarian Republic of Venezuela denounces and categorically
rejects the theft and hijacking of a new private vessel carrying
Venezuelan oil, as well as the enforced disappearance of its crew,
committed by United States military personnel in waters international,”
said a statement from the Venezuelan government.
Venezuela warned that these actions will not go unpunished and will
exercise all the corresponding actions, including denunciation before
the UN Security Council, other multilateral agencies and governments of
the world.
In addition, the Bolivarian government recalls that international law
will prevail and those responsible for these serious acts will be held
accountable by justice and history for their criminal conduct.
The US government intercepted a Panamanian-flagged oil tanker in
international Caribbean waters off Venezuela. The detained ship, named
Centuries, is not on the list of tankers sanctioned by the USA.
The government of constitutional president of Venezuela Nicolas Maduro
warns that this serious act of piracy “involves the flagrant commission
of an offence under article 3 of the Convention for the Suppression of
Unlawful Acts against the Safety of Maritime Navigation, 1988 and a
gross violation of article 2 of the Charter of the United Nations,
Article 2 of the Geneva Convention on the High Seas and the Declaration
on the principles of international law relating to friendly relations
and cooperation between States.”
Venezuela stresses that the colonialist model which the United States
Government intends to impose through this type of practice will fail and
be defeated by the Venezuelan people, and will continue with its
economic growth, tion of its 14 engines and the development of its
hydrocarbon industry in an independent and sovereign manner.
The US government intercepted a Panamanian-flagged oil tanker in
international Caribbean waters off Venezuela. According to the Secretary
of National Security, the operation seeks to stop the illicit movement
of sanctioned oil.
This is the second vessel intercepted by the U.S. in the Caribbean,
after the seizure of the ship Skipper last week. The detained ship,
named Centuries, is not on the list of tankers sanctioned by the USA.
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