United States forces have seized an oil tanker in the Caribbean that the Trump administration says is linked to Venezuela, marking the sixth vessel detained as Washington moves to assert control over Venezuelan oil resources.

Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem said the U.S. Coast Guard boarded the tanker, the Veronica, early on Thursday. She said the vessel had previously passed through Venezuelan waters and was operating in violation of President Donald Trump’s “established quarantine of sanctioned vessels in the Caribbean”.

According to Noem, U.S. Marines and Navy personnel aboard the aircraft carrier USS Gerald R. Ford took part in the operation alongside a Coast Guard tactical team that carried out the boarding.

The U.S. military said the seizure was conducted “without incident”.
The Veronica is the sixth sanctioned tanker seized by U.S. forces under Trump’s pledge to take indefinite control of the production, refining and global distribution of Venezuela’s oil products.

It is also the fourth vessel seized since the U.S. abducted Venezuelan President Nicolás Maduro during a military operation in Caracas nearly two weeks ago.

The latest seizure comes as Venezuela’s interim president, Delcy Rodríguez, told parliament on Thursday that the government plans to reform legislation governing the country’s oil sector.

The Hydrocarbons Law, among other measures, restricts the participation of foreign companies in exploiting Venezuela’s natural resources.

Without providing specific details, Rodríguez said the reforms would also affect Venezuela’s so-called anti-blockade law, which grants the government powers to counter U.S. sanctions imposed since 2019.

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