The American side previously intercepted seven tankers belonging to Venezuela
According to two representatives of the American authorities, the U.S. is returning a tanker to Venezuela that was seized in January. This is the first instance in which the Donald Trump administration is returning a seized tanker, according to information provided by RKB.
The tanker in question is called M/T Sophia and sails under the Panamanian flag. Officials did not specify the reasons for its return.
The Sophia tanker was intercepted on January 7 by the Coast Guard and American military forces, as the agency clarifies. U.S. administration representatives stated that the tanker is under sanctions, has no state affiliation, and belongs to the "shadow fleet."
According to data provided by the agency, since the end of 2025, the U.S. has seized seven tankers linked to Venezuela.
The first operation to seize Venezuelan tankers took place on December 10, 2025, when Trump announced the detention of a large-tonnage tanker carrying oil off the coast of Venezuela. According to media reports, this involved the vessel Skipper, which had been placed on U.S. sanctions lists back in 2022 for participating in the smuggling of Iranian oil.
On December 17, Trump officially announced the introduction of a maritime oil blockade against Venezuela.
At the end of December, American forces detained a second tanker — Centuries, and then began pursuing the vessel Bella 1, which was sailing under the Panamanian flag. It later became known that Bella 1 had been renamed and entered into the Russian Maritime Register of Shipping. As reported by The New York Times, Russia sent a diplomatic note to the U.S. demanding an end to the pursuit of the tanker.
After the detention of Bella 1, American military personnel continued their operations against vessels linked to sanctioned oil from Caracas.
In early January, the U.S. seized the tanker Marinera, which had left Venezuelan waters and changed its Panamanian flag to a Russian one, with Russians on board. On January 8, the Russian Foreign Ministry condemned this "illegal use of force" and called for an end to the pursuit.
The Sophia tanker was also intercepted in the Caribbean Sea; however, no details about this incident were provided.
It should be noted that on January 3, 2026, the U.S. conducted an operation dubbed "Absolute Resolve": strikes were carried out on facilities in Caracas (including military bases and airports), and Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro and his wife Cilia Flores were captured at their residence at Fort Tiuna.
Maduro and Flores were taken to the U.S., where they were charged with "narcoterrorism," possession of weapons, and smuggling.
Vice President Delcy Rodriguez was sworn in as interim president.
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