The United States has announced new sanctions on shipping companies and ships that it says help move Venezuelan oil. This action puts more pressure on a key support system for President Nicolás Maduro’s government. This announcement came just a day after authorities seized a sanctioned tanker off the country’s coast that was likely carrying millions of dollars’ worth of oil.
Included in the sanctions list released by the U.S. Treasury on Thursday are three nephews of Maduro’s wife, Cilia Flores, along with another businessman affiliated with Maduro. Notably, two of the sanctioned nephews had previously been convicted of drug trafficking charges in the U.S. before being released as part of a prisoner swap.
The Treasury stated that these six vessels were engaged in “deceptive and unsafe shipping practices,” which contributed financial resources to Maduro’s government. Four of the vessels are flagged under Panama, while the other two are registered in the Cook Islands and Hong Kong.
This action further escalates the Trump administration’s ongoing pressure campaign against Venezuela. This campaign has included deploying thousands of troops and a carrier strike group to the Caribbean, conducting strikes on suspected drug boats, and issuing repeated threats against Maduro.
On Wednesday, armed U.S. personnel seized an oil tanker in international waters off the Venezuelan coast. This tanker was allegedly involved in an “illicit oil shipping network” that supports countries, including Venezuela and Iran, according to Attorney General Pam Bondi.
Venezuela possesses the world’s largest known reserves of crude oil, but international sanctions and a severe economic crisis have severely impacted the country’s oil industry. Despite this, the state-owned oil and natural gas company PDVSA remains the primary source of revenue for Maduro’s cash-strapped government, largely due to a network of clandestine vessels that smuggle Venezuelan oil into global supply chains.
Targeted Tankers Headed to Cuba
The seized tanker was en route to Cuba and carrying Venezuelan crude when it was intercepted by U.S. forces. This occurred around the same time Venezuelan opposition leader and Nobel laureate Maria Corina Machado arrived in Oslo after defying a travel ban and fleeing the country.
Previously named Adisa, the tanker was sanctioned by the U.S. in 2022 for facilitating oil trades on behalf of Hezbollah and Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps-Quds Force.
The ship’s skipper had concealed its true location while docked at a Venezuelan oil terminal last month, according to satellite and shipping data reviewed by CNN. Although the tanker was flying a Guyana flag, it was not registered in Guyana, as confirmed by the country’s Maritime Administration Department.
As of early Friday EST, none of the six vessels sanctioned on Thursday were located in the Caribbean, based on AIS shipping data analyzed by CNN.
Additionally, there were at least eight tankers under U.S. sanctions related to Iran or Russia’s war in Ukraine near Venezuelan ports or off its coast, according to AIS shipping data and U.S. Treasury data. This group includes three tankers located around the Port Jose Oil Terminal, which is the same terminal where the recently seized vessel, Skipper, was spotted in satellite imagery last month.
White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt stated that the Skipper will be taken to an American port, where U.S. authorities plan to take possession of its oil cargo.
President Maduro said that the seizure is a sign of “new criminal naval piracy in the Caribbean.” In response, his government filed a formal complaint with the International Maritime Organization.
