US seizes Venezuela-linked oil tanker in Indian Ocean

KATHMANDU: The Pentagon reported Sunday that the U.S. military intercepted and inspected another Venezuela-linked oil tanker in the Indian Ocean during overnight operations.

The tanker, named Veronica 3, had been tracked by U.S. officials from the Caribbean to the Indian Ocean before being stopped and searched, the Pentagon said in a statement posted on social media platform X.

Maritime tracking websites identified Veronica 3 as a Panama-flagged oil tanker.

This comes just a week after the U.S. seized another Venezuela-linked vessel, Aquila 2, following a similar pursuit from the Caribbean to the Indian Ocean.

The actions follow a December order by then-President Donald Trump imposing a “full blockade” on all U.S.-sanctioned oil tankers entering or leaving Venezuela.

The embargo remains in effect even after the U.S. conducted a raid and arrest operation targeting Venezuelan President Nicolás Maduro on Jan 3.