U.S. to hand over seized tanker to Venezuela

The United States says it's handing over a tanker to Venezuela that it seized earlier this month, according to two U.S. officials, marking the first known case of President Donald Trump’s administration returning such a vessel, Reuters reported.

The officials, who spoke on condition of anonymity, said the tanker being transferred to Venezuelan authorities is the Panama-flagged supertanker M/T Sophia. They did not give a reason for the decision.

The U.S. Coast Guard, which leads interdiction and seizure operations, did not immediately respond to a request for comment.

The Venezuelan communications ministry, which handles all press queries for the government, did not immediately respond to a request for comment.

The move comes as Washington continues enforcement actions against vessels linked to Venezuelan oil exports under U.S. sanctions. In recent weeks, U.S. forces have seized several tankers suspected of transporting Venezuelan crude in violation of those sanctions.

Two previously seized Venezuela-linked tankers, including M/T Sophia, were recently seen anchored near Puerto Rico after disappearing from tracking systems, highlighting the scale of U.S. maritime operations targeting what officials describe as a “shadow fleet” moving sanctioned oil.

The United States has imposed energy sanctions on Venezuela since 2019, with the aim of restricting oil exports and pressuring Caracas over governance and security concerns.

The Sophia was carrying oil when it was interdicted on 7 January by the Coast Guard and U.S. military forces. At the time, the administration said the Sophia, which is under sanctions, was a "stateless, sanctioned dark fleet motor tanker."

One of the sources did not know if the Sophia still had oil on board.

• U.S. seizes seventh Venezuela-linked oil tanker in Caribbean
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Trump has focused his foreign policy in Latin America on Venezuela, initially aiming to push Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro from power. After failing to find a diplomatic solution, Trump ordered U.S. forces to fly into the country to grab him and his wife in a daring overnight raid on 3 January.

Since then, Trump has said the U.S. plans to control Venezuela's oil resources indefinitely as it seeks to rebuild the country's dilapidated oil industry in a $100 billion plan.

Along with most tankers under Western sanctions or part of the so-called shadow fleet, many of the Venezuela-linked tankers seized were built more than 20 years ago and pose hazards to shipping because they lack safety certification and adequate insurance, experts said.

That means that if they have a collision or oil spill, establishing insurance claims or liability is very difficult to impossible, shipping and insurance industry sources said.

Dubai-run GMS has applied for a U.S. license to buy and scrap ships seized by the U.S. government linked to Venezuelan oil trading.

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