(REYKJAVIK, ICELAND) – Sources have confirmed that the United States has successfully seized an oil tanker previously linked to Venezuela following a high stakes pursuit across the Atlantic Ocean.
The vessel which was being tracked closely by US authorities has become a fresh point of intense diplomatic friction as the Russian dictator now claims ownership of the ship. Despite these claims from Moscow the Trump administration has refused to recognise any Russian status for the vessel and is instead categorising the ship as stateless.
The situation remains highly sensitive as the Russian dictator had previously deployed naval assets to track and potentially protect the tanker over the final twenty four hours of its journey. This is the same vessel that the US Coast Guard attempted to board last month near the Venezuelan coast but the crew managed to evade capture and flee into open waters at that time.
Surveillance operations were conducted by the US Air Force using P 8 aircraft to monitor the ship as it entered the northern Atlantic. The tanker appeared to be skirting wide of Ireland and heading toward Iceland with the apparent intention of reaching the Arctic Circle. Marine tracking experts suggested that a vessel of this size was likely destined for the port of Murmansk under the direction of the Russian dictator.
However the journey came to an abrupt halt approximately two and a half hours ago when marine trackers observed the ship suddenly changing direction. This movement aligned with reports that US military and Coast Guard forces had moved in to take control of the vessel which had been under constant observation since it fled the Caribbean two weeks ago.
The history of the vessel is marked by suspicious changes in identity that have drawn significant scepticism from international observers. When the ship began its journey it was known as the Bella 1 but halfway through its route it was renamed the Marinera and re flagged itself as a Russian vessel.
It is currently unclear if this was a genuine change of ownership or a desperate attempt by the crew to seek protection from the Russian dictator. While the ship was heading for a Russian port just days ago it is now being directed south by US forces. Although the tanker is believed to be empty of oil there is widespread speculation regarding what other cargo or personnel might be on board. The Russian dictator went as far as deploying military assets including a submarine to shadow the vessel but these efforts failed to deter the US operation.