Washington– The United States has seized an oil tanker off the coast of Venezuela amid escalating tensions with the government of Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro, President Donald Trump said on Wednesday.
This is the latest effort by the Trump administration to increase pressure on Maduro, who is accused of drug terrorism in the United States.
“We just seized a tanker off the coast of Venezuela, and it’s a very large tanker, the largest tanker ever seized,” Trump told reporters at the White House.
Trump said that “other things are happening,” but did not provide additional details, saying that he would talk about them more later.
The seizure was led by the U.S. Coast Guard and supported by the Navy, according to a U.S. official who was not authorized to comment publicly and spoke on condition of anonymity.
A day earlier, the US Army A pair of fighter planes flew by Over the Gulf of Venezuela in what appeared to be the closest warplanes have come to the South American country’s airspace since the beginning of the operation. Administration’s pressure campaign.
The United States has built the largest military presence in the region in decades and launched a series of attacks Fatal strikes on alleged drug smuggling boats In the Caribbean Sea and the eastern Pacific Ocean.
Trump said Ground attacks are coming soon But he did not provide any details about the location.
Among the concessions made by the United States to Maduro during the past negotiations was approval for the giant oil company Chevron to resume pumping and exporting Venezuelan oil. The company’s activities in the South American country have resulted in a financial lifeline for the Maduro government.