The President of the United States, Donald Trump, announced that the oil from the seized vessel off the coast of Venezuela will be kept by his government, and the administration confirmed this on Thursday.
During an exchange with journalists at the White House on Wednesday, the president responded in his usual straightforward manner to the question: "What about the oil from the tanker you confiscated near Venezuela?"
"I guess we're taking the oil!" Trump said, lashing out at the reporter who wanted to know the destination of the ship: "You're a good informant. Get a helicopter and follow the tanker!"
One day later, Washington officially confirmed that the oil tanker, seized by U.S. forces in an operation off the Venezuelan coast, will be transferred to a port in the United States, but did not specify which one.
The measure coincided with new sanctions from the Treasury Department against three relatives of Cilia Flores, Nicolás Maduro's wife, and six companies linked to the shipment of Venezuelan crude oil.
The Treasury Department labeled two of Flores' nephews as "drug traffickers operating in Venezuela." "Nicolás Maduro and his criminal associates are flooding the United States with drugs that are poisoning our people," stated Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent.
The ship was heading to Cuba when it was intercepted by the Coast Guard
The White House explained that the transfer aims to prevent the trafficking of sanctioned oil that finances “narco-terrorism by illegitimate regimes,” according to spokesperson Karoline Leavitt.
The operation was carried out by U.S. forces who descended on ropes from a helicopter onto the ship's deck, in what the Department of Homeland Security described as an action directed at the "Maduro regime."
From Caracas, dictator Nicolás Maduro described the action as a "blatant robbery and an act of international piracy," claiming there was a "kidnapping of the crew" and vowed to "protect the free trade of Venezuelan oil."
The UN expressed concern over the escalation of tensions and called for "moderation to avoid destabilizing the region." More than a week ago, Trump stated that Maduro's days are "numbered" and did not rule out a ground invasion if the Chavista regime continues to challenge U.S. sanctions.
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