The U.S. Coast Guard stopped and boarded a Panamanian-flagged tanker carrying Venezuelan oil early Saturday, according to a U.S. official and two people inside Venezuela’s oil industry. This represents the United States’ second action this month against a tanker carrying Venezuelan crude oil to Asia, escalating President Trump’s pressure campaign against Venezuelan leader Nicolás Maduro. Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem said in a post on X Saturday afternoon that the Coast Guard had “apprehended” a tanker that had been docked in Venezuela. The ship had recently left Venezuela and was in Caribbean waters. “The United States will continue to pursue the illicit movement of sanctioned oil that is used to fund narco-terrorism in the region,” she wrote. People inside Venezuela’s oil industry said the cargo belongs to an established China-based oil trader with a history of taking Venezuelan crude oil to Chinese refineries. Noem also posted a video that appeared to show U.S. forces rappelling from a helicopter onto the ship’s deck. Trump has accused Maduro of flooding the United States with fentanyl and of stealing oil from American companies, without providing evidence. It was unclear how long the United States intended to detain the Centuries. The White House did not respond to Newsroom Panama’s requests for comment. “We will find you, and we will stop you,” Noem said. All three spoke on condition of anonymity to discuss a sensitive topic. The Venezuelan government said in a statement that the country “denounces and categorically rejects the theft and hijacking of another private vessel transporting Venezuelan oil, as well as the forced disappearance of its crew.” On Tuesday, Mr. Trump had announced “a total and complete blockade of all sanctioned oil tankers going into and out of Venezuela.” However, the vessel boarded on Saturday, called the Centuries, is not on a list of entities under U.S. sanctions that is publicly maintained by the Treasury Department.
