In a dramatic escalation of pressure on Venezuela's oil industry, United States military forces have seized another foreign-flagged oil tanker in the Caribbean Sea. The operation, conducted before dawn on 15 January 2026, marks the sixth such interdiction since the capture and removal of Venezuelan President Nicolás Maduro earlier this month.
Pre-Dawn Raid on the Veronica
The US Southern Command announced the action on Thursday, stating that marines and sailors had boarded the crude oil tanker Veronica. According to marine records, the vessel sails under a Guyanese flag. The forces were launched from the aircraft carrier USS Gerald R. Ford (CVN 78) and apprehended the tanker without incident.
The command released blurry, black-and-white aerial footage appearing to show service members fast-roping from a helicopter onto the tanker's deck. The operation was conducted in cooperation with the US Coast Guard, the Department of Homeland Security, and the Department of Justice.
While the precise location was not disclosed, maritime tracking data from marinetraffic.com indicates the 815-foot (249-metre) vessel's last known position, recorded 12 days prior, was off the coast of Venezuela.
A Pattern of Enforcement: Operation Southern Spear
This seizure is part of a concerted campaign, dubbed Operation Southern Spear, to enforce President Donald Trump's sanctions and a declared quarantine of sanctioned vessels in the Caribbean. In a social media post, Southern Command stated the Veronica was "operating in defiance of President Trump’s established quarantine," and its capture proved "the effectiveness of Operation Southern Spear yet again."
The Trump administration has moved aggressively to control the global distribution of Venezuela's oil following the ousting of Maduro. This is the sixth known boarding and seizure of a foreign-flagged oil tanker in support of this policy. Just the day before this announcement, on Friday, Southern Command revealed the boarding of a vessel named Olina near Trinidad, which was the fifth interdiction in recent weeks. That operation was also launched from the USS Gerald R. Ford.
Separately, the US has conducted a series of strikes on suspected drug smuggling boats off the Venezuelan coast since autumn.
Unwavering Mission in the Western Hemisphere
The Department of War, through Southern Command, emphasised its resolve in the region. "The Department of War is unwavering in its mission to crush illicit activity in the Western Hemisphere," the command said in its statement on Thursday.
This latest action underscores the ongoing and intensifying US military involvement in Caribbean waters, directly linking defence strategy to economic sanctions and foreign policy objectives against the Venezuelan state. The seizure of the Veronica signals that the Trump administration's campaign to strangle Venezuela's oil revenue, a critical lifeline for the country, is being actively enforced by military means.
