U.S. Forces Seize Third Venezuela-Linked Tanker in the Atlantic
After a dayslong delay, U.S. forces have seized the sanctioned tanker Bella 1 in the Atlantic, officials told Bloomberg.
The Bella 1 is the third tanker that the U.S. Coast Guard has seized this month in connection with the U.S. pressure campaign on Venezuela, and the action sends the strongest message yet to shipowners who might think of engaging in PDVSA's oil export trade. Bella 1 was in ballast en route to Venezuela when she was intercepted, and she turned around and fled after declining to cooperate with a boarding. The U.S. Coast Guard tracked her for days as she transited out into the Atlantic, reportedly waiting for a Maritime Security Response Team (MSRT) trained in opposed boardings in order to effect a capture.
By Thursday, Bella 1 was more than a thousand miles from Venezuela; had abandoned her attempt to call at a Venezuelan port; and had no Venezuelan oil aboard. Despite these mitigating factors, she was still followed, boarded and seized - a demonstration of the Trump administration's resolve, and a serious warning to "shadow fleet" owners. An approach to Venezuelan waters may be enough to trigger interdiction, and turning around is not enough to avoid it once initiated.
The seizure is a double win for the administration, as Bella 1 had ties to two of Washington's geopolitical targets. According to TankerTrackers.com, the Bella 1 has an extensive history in both the Venezuelan and Iranian "shadow fleet" trade lanes. Over the last four years, she picked up a combined 11 million barrels of Iranian and Venezuelan oil in various loadings, plus another 9.3 million barrels in STS transfers. All of it was bound for China, the leading buyer of "sensitive" crude cargoes.
China has spoken up in defense of Venezuela's oil exporters. "By arbitrarily seizing other countries’ vessels, the U.S. has seriously violated international law. China stands against unilateral illicit sanctions that lack basis in international law or authorization of the UN Security Council, and against any move that violates the purposes and principles of the UN Charter," Chinese foreign ministry spokesman Lin Jian said earlier this week.
Several dozen sanctioned tankers are said to be bottled up in Venezuela's territorial waters, all awaiting a safe window for departure. Venezuelan state oil company PDVSA is said to be loading as many as possible in order to augment its storage and avoid having to shut in production at its oil wells.