The U.S. Coast Guard over the weekend seized the Chinese-owned tanker Centuries and pursued the Bella 1 near Venezuela's coast, escalating President Trump's blockade on sanctioned oil vessels. These are the latest actions following the recent interception of the Skipper and Centuries, aimed at pressuring Nicolás Maduro's regime.
Building on prior interceptions—including the December 10 seizure of the Skipper via helicopter rappelling and the December 21 boarding of Centuries—U.S. forces targeted two more oil tankers over the weekend. On Saturday, the Coast Guard seized the Panamanian-flagged Centuries, which was not under U.S. sanctions, while simultaneously pursuing the Bella 1 en route to load Venezuelan oil.
These operations align with Trump's declared blockade on sanctioned tankers entering or leaving Venezuela, intended to curb oil exports funding Maduro. The campaign also encompasses U.S. strikes since September on over two dozen vessels allegedly tied to drug trafficking in the Caribbean and Pacific, resulting in more than 100 deaths.
Criticism mounted Sunday as Republican Sen. Rand Paul of Kentucky condemned the actions: "I consider it a provocation and a prelude to war... It isn’t the job of the American soldier to be the policeman of the world. So I’m not for confiscating these liners. I’m not for blowing up these boats of unarmed people that are suspected of being drug dealers."
The moves heighten U.S.-Venezuela tensions, with broader demands for return of expropriated American oil assets.