Nicolas Maduro This Sunday, he called the confiscation of oil tankers by the United States, which he intercepted today, “private piracy.” a third ship near the country, according to the media, as part of its military deployment in the Caribbean Sea.
In a message on his Telegram channel, Maduro spoke in general and did not refer to the two confiscations carried out this weekend by the United Stateswhich on Saturday seized a Panamanian-flagged tanker that, according to Washington, was trafficking “sanctioned crude oil” within the Venezuelan “ghost fleet.”
The Chavista leader pointed out that his country “has spent 25 weeks denouncing, confronting and defeating a campaign of aggression that ranges from psychological terrorism to privateers who have assaulted oil tankers.”
However, he assured that they are “prepared to accelerate the march of the profound revolution,” alluding to the movement and political project of Chavismo.
Ships intercepted to Venezuela
The United States intercepted a third oil tanker this Sunday, whose status is unknown and it is not yet clear if it was transporting Venezuelan crude, as confirmed by a US official cited by CNN.
When consulted by EFE, the Pentagon and the Coast Guard referred all questions about the operation to the White House, which at the moment has not corroborated the reports about the action in progress.
Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem reported on Saturday the seizure of the Panamanian-flagged tanker Centuries, which according to the White House, It was a “false flag” ship, part of “the Venezuelan ghost fleet to traffic stolen oil and finance Maduro’s narco-terrorist regime.”
The deputy spokesperson for the Administration, Anna Kelly, insisted that the ship “was transporting oil from (Venezuelan state-owned) PDVSA, a sanctioned company,” given reports that the confiscated tanker is not part of the United States blacklist.
On December 10, Washington seized the sanctioned ship Skipper and confiscated the crude oil it was transporting.
Days later, Trump announced a total blockade of the entry and exit of this country to oil tankers sanctioned by the US Government, within the pressure he exerts on the Maduro Government, which Washington accuses of leading a drug trafficking network.
Caracas rejected the first two seizures as “theft” and insists that it will take “all appropriate actions” against what it calls acts of “piracy.”
