(Reuters): Russia has sent a submarine and other naval vessels to escort an ageing oil tanker that the United States has been trying to seize near Venezuela, the “Wall Street Journal”, citing U.S. officials.The tanker, formerly known as “Bella 1”, has been evading interception since the U.S. Coast Guard attempted to board it in December as part of Washington’s blockade on sanctioned Venezuelan oil shipments. The vessel was empty at the time, the report said.
According to the “Journal”, Moscow has urged Washington to stop pursuing the ship. Reuters could not independently verify the report. The White House and the U.S. Coast Guard did not immediately respond to requests for comment.
Russia’s Foreign Ministry said it was monitoring the situation “with concern,” according to Russia’s state news agency RIA. The U.S. Southern Command said on X that it remains ready to support U.S. agencies in countering sanctioned vessels in the region, without referencing the reported Russian escort.
The Coast Guard has continued to track the tanker into the eastern Atlantic, where it is sailing about 300 miles south of Iceland toward the North Sea, the *Journal* reported, citing ship-tracking data.The tanker has since been renamed “Marinera” and re-registered under the Russian flag.
Separately, U.S. President Donald Trump said on Tuesday that Washington plans to refine and sell up to 50 million barrels of Venezuelan oil previously blocked by sanctions, signaling increased coordination with Venezuela’s government following the capture of President Nicolás Maduro in a raid last weekend.
