The United States is preparing to seize new tankers from Venezuela. What the media is writing
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- The United States is preparing to seize new tankers from Venezuela. What the media is writing
The seizure of a tanker with Venezuelan oil has opened a new stage of confrontation with the South American country for the United States. Now the military is preparing to detain new vessels of the shadow fleet, on which the Venezuelan economy depends. At the same time, there are voices in the US Congress against the use of such tactics. How the world's media react to what is happening is in the Izvestia digest.
Bloomberg: Tanker seizure is just the beginning for the United States and Venezuela
The seizure of a huge oil supertanker off the coast of Venezuela is just the beginning of a new stage in US President Donald Trump's intensified pressure campaign on Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro. According to sources of the publication, this act of economic policy is designed to deprive the Venezuelan leader of a source of oil revenues and force him to relinquish power.
Bloomberg
"We are not going to stand by and watch as sanctioned vessels sail the seas carrying oil sold on the black market, the proceeds of which will fuel drug terrorism by criminal and illegitimate regimes around the world," White House spokeswoman Caroline Leavitt told reporters on Thursday.
Maduro's inner circle is looking for ways to adapt to a scenario in which the United States could seize other vessels under sanctions. In particular, according to sources, the heads of the state oil company Petroleos de Venezuela SA are trying to determine how to safely export oil to China, which buys the vast majority of Venezuelan oil through intermediaries.
Reuters: The United States is preparing to seize several more tankers off the coast of Venezuela
The United States is preparing to intercept more ships carrying Venezuelan oil, six sources familiar with the situation said. The seizure was the first time an oil cargo was intercepted from Venezuela, which has been under US sanctions since 2019. This happened against the background of a large-scale US military buildup in the southern Caribbean and against the background of Trump's desire to overthrow Maduro.
Reuters
Recent US actions have led to the fact that shipowners, operators and maritime agencies involved in the transportation of Venezuelan oil are on high alert, and many of them are reviewing their plans to exit Venezuelan waters in the coming days, sources in the shipping industry said. According to the sources, <...> in the coming weeks, further direct interventions by the United States are expected regarding ships carrying Venezuelan oil, which could also deliver oil from other countries under US sanctions, such as Iran.
According to one of the sources, the United States has compiled a list of several more tankers under sanctions that may be confiscated. According to two sources, the U.S. Department of Justice and the Department of Homeland Security have been planning these seizures for months. The seizure of the Skipper tanker forced at least one shipper to temporarily suspend flights of three recently loaded shipments totaling almost 6 million barrels of oil.
NBC News: the United States imposed sanctions against three nephews of Maduro
The United States has imposed sanctions on three of Maduro's nephews, as well as others, as part of a campaign of pressure on Venezuela. The new sanctions against Franca Flores, Carlos Flores and Efrain Campo were imposed the day after Trump announced the seizure of an oil tanker off the coast of Venezuela. The sanctions also include Panamanian businessman Ramon Carretero, six companies and six Venezuelan-flagged vessels accused of transporting Venezuelan oil.
NBC News
Carretero is accused of facilitating oil shipments on behalf of the Venezuelan government, and the Treasury Department says he had business dealings with the Maduro-Flores family, including being a partner in several companies. The U.S. Treasury Department's Office of Foreign Assets Control released a list of sanctions on Thursday.
In October 2022, Venezuela released seven American prisoners in exchange for the release by the United States of Carlos Flores and Campo, who had been in prison for years on drug possession charges. They were arrested in Haiti during a drug enforcement Administration operation in 2015 and convicted the following year in New York.
The Guardian: US lawmakers condemn tanker seizure
There is growing bipartisan concern in Washington, at least partially, about the escalation of military activity around Venezuela. Senior Democratic lawmakers and at least one Republican have condemned the seizure of an oil tanker off the coast of the country. Democratic Senator Chris Van Hollen, a member of the Foreign Relations Committee, said the seizure of the tanker was evidence of the administration's dishonesty regarding its military operations in the region.
The Guardian
Rand Paul, a Republican senator from Kentucky, said that "the seizure of an oil tanker is the beginning of a war," and wondered "whether the task of the American government is to look for monsters around the world, look for opponents and start wars." Democratic Senator Chris Coons also expressed concern about the administration's actions.: "I have no idea why the president is seizing an oil tanker, and I am very seriously concerned that he is leading us to war with Venezuela, as if in a dream."
Democratic Senator Mark Warner drew attention to the fact that if the United States can confiscate an oil tanker, it can do the same with ships carrying drugs. His colleague and fellow party member Adam Schiff called the events "a very dangerous escalation and a prelude to a potential conflict." Last week, he and Paul, along with fellow Senators Tim Kaine and Chuck Schumer, introduced a war powers resolution aimed at blocking the administration's military action against Venezuela without congressional approval.
The New York Times: Tanker seizure dealt a blow to Venezuela's vital resources
The seizure of a U.S. oil tanker off the coast of Venezuela has revealed a significant factor in the standoff between Caracas and Washington: oil remains a vital resource for Venezuela's fragile economy. It is almost entirely dependent on oil and petroleum products as a source of export earnings. Revenues from the oil industry are used to keep the government running, maintain weapons systems, and import essential goods such as food.
The New York Times
According to economists, an increase in the number of tanker seizures will limit this revenue stream. Each confiscated shipment means a loss of revenue, and Venezuela may be forced to sell its oil at a significant discount to traders who are still willing to take risks doing business with the country.
Currently, oil accounts for about 88% of Venezuela's export revenues of $24 billion, and each tanker seized will reduce the revenue needed to import food and medicine. The rest of the revenue comes from products related to oil production, such as petrochemical products. The situation is aggravated by the decline in oil production in Venezuela due to poor governance, corruption and US sanctions. Oil prices have also fallen from the sky-high levels that supported Maduro's predecessor Hugo Chavez.
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