The United States military has seized a Russian-flagged oil tanker in the North Atlantic Ocean for sanctions violations, bringing an end to a multi-week pursuit by US forces.
The seizure of the vessel, which evaded being boarded near Venezuela, was a joint operation between the Department of Homeland Security and US military personnel, the US European Command, which is responsible for the region, said in a post on social media.
US officials said that Russian military vessels were in the general vicinity of the operation, including a Russian submarine.
It was unclear how close the vessels were, but there were no indications of a confrontation between US and Russian forces.
While being pursued by the US Coast Guard, the vessel had switched its registration to Russia, changed its name from M/V Bella 1 to the Marinera, and the crew reportedly painted a Russian flag on the tanker.
The US has said that it deemed the tanker to be stateless "after flying a false flag".
"This was a Venezuelan shadow fleet vessel that has transported sanctioned oil. The vessel was deemed stateless after flying a false flag, and it had a judicial seizure order, and that's why the crew will be subject to prosecution," White House Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt told reporters.
Attorney General Pam Bondi said in a statement that the Marinera crew had made "frantic efforts to avoid apprehension" and "failed to obey" Coast Guard orders, and so faces criminal charges.
Russia said the seizure of the tanker was a violation of maritime law. A senior politician described it as "outright piracy".
Russia's transport ministry said that contact with the vessel had been lost after US naval forces boarded it near Iceland as part of efforts to block oil exports from Venezuela.
"In accordance with the 1982 UN Convention on the Law of the Sea, freedom of navigation applies in the high seas, and no state has the right to use force against vessels duly registered in the jurisdictions of other states," the ministry said in a statement.
Russia demanded that the US ensured humane and decent treatment of the crew members and their swift return home, state news agency TASS quoted the foreign ministry as saying.
"Given incoming information about the presence of Russian citizens among the crew, we demand that the United States ensure humane and dignified treatment, strictly respect their rights and interests, and not impede their speedy return to their homeland."
The ministry also said that Moscow is closely following reports about the landing of the US military on the vessel.
Watch: US Coast Guard intercepts Venezuela-linked tanker in Latin America waters
It did not say how many Russian nationals were on board the tanker.
"For reasons unclear to us, the Russian vessel is receiving heightened attention from the US and NATO militaries - attention that is clearly disproportionate to its peaceful status," the ministry had said earlier.
The UK's Ministry of Defence said it had provided support to the US operation, including Royal Air Force surveillance.
The ministry insisted the support was "in full compliance with international law".
In a social media post, the US military's European Command said the Trump administration had seized the vessel for violating American sanctions.
"The blockade of sanctioned and illicit Venezuelan oil remains in FULL EFFECT - anywhere in the world," US defence secretary Pete Hegseth said in reply to the post.
The vessel had thwarted an attempt by the US Coast Guard to board it late last month as it neared Venezuela.
Tracking data from MarineTraffic showed the tanker nearing Iceland's Exclusive Economic Zone today.
Earlier this week, satellite data placed the Marinera around 400km west of Ireland, travelling north, outside the State's Exclusive Economic Zone.
The US military also announced the seizure of a second sanctioned tanker in the Caribbean, which it identified as the M Sophia.
The tanker was fully loaded, according to records of Venezuela's state oil company PDVSA.
In a pre-dawn action this morning, the Department of War, in coordination with the Department of Homeland Security, apprehended a stateless, sanctioned dark fleet motor tanker without incident.
— U.S. Southern Command (@Southcom) January 7, 2026
The interdicted vessel, M/T Sophia, was operating in international waters and… pic.twitter.com/JQm9gHprPk
Former head of Garda Cósta na hÉireann (Irish Coast Guard) Chris Reynolds said the US should not have been allowed to board the tanker, describing the development as "very serious".
The Marinera had the "right of free passage on the high seas," he told RTÉ's Drivetime.
Mr Reynolds said the only reason the US could "legally" board the vessel in international waters was if it was believed to be involved in piracy, human trafficking, terrorism, or flying an illegal flag.
"In other words, if the flag isn't real and they need to board the vessel to inspect it," he said.
As a Russia-flagged vessel, the ship is the property of Russia, Mr Reynolds added.
"You're on Russian soil... so the crew on board are entitled to the protection of the Russian government, because they are basically standing on Russian soil when they are being arrested.
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Retired Naval commander Tony Geraghty described the tanker as "an enormous ship".
He told RTÉ's News at One that it measures about the length of three football pitches and is the same width.
He said the vessel is believed to be "in ballast," meaning it is not carrying any cargo.
Report requested on access to Irish airspace - McEntee
Minister for Foreign Affairs Helen McEntee described the seizure of the tanker as a "fast evolving and changing situation".
Asked whether the US had sought permission to fly through Irish airspace in recent days to monitor the vessel, Ms McEntee said that Ireland has a "long-standing" aviation agreement with the US, dating to 1959.
"It very clearly states where and when permission needs to be sought when it comes to flying over airspace," she told RTÉ's Six One.
Ms McEntee said that she has been in touch with the US embassy and "they are very clear that they have complied with that".
However, she said that she expects a report soon from her departmental team "outlining exactly what has happened here".
"There's very clear rules and guidance as to when permission is needed, and the US have been clear that they have complied with the 1959 agreement that's in place for many, many years now."
Tánaiste Simon Harris yesterday said he was not aware whether permission was sought by the United States for its military to fly over Ireland to monitor the tanker.
He said there are "clear rules" in relation to other jurisdictions accessing Irish airspace and he believed those rules were followed.
Venezuelan oil
The developments are the latest in US President Donald Trump's crackdown on sanctioned oil tankers travelling to and from Venezuela.
The Marinera has been sanctioned by Washington since 2024 over alleged ties to Iran and Hezbollah.
President Trump said this week that Venezuela would hand over tens of millions of barrels of oil to the United States, days after a US raid toppled the country's anti-American president, Nicolas Maduro.
It is not clear if Venezuela's new ruler - interim President Delcy Rodriguez - agreed to hand over the oil, how the plan would work, or what its legal basis would be.
US Energy Secretary Chris Wright said today that Washington will control the sales of Venezuelan oil "indefinitely," telling an event in Miami that it needed leverage and control of these sales to drive necessary changes in Venezuela.
Venezuela claims to sit on about a fifth of the world's oil reserves.
Already, the US government has started marketing Venezuelan crude oil internationally, the Energy Department noted today.
It added that all proceeds from the sale of this crude oil and oil products will "first settle in US controlled accounts at globally recognized banks."
"These funds will be disbursed for the benefit of the American people and the Venezuelan people at the discretion of the US government," the department said, without providing further details.
The sales will also "continue indefinitely," it said.
Mr Wright separately told CNBC the United States was merely controlling the marketing and flow of funds into Venezuela, maintaining that the money will largely be used to benefit Venezuelan people.
"We're not stealing anyone's oil."
Mr Wright also told CNBC that some of the proceeds from Venezuelan oil sales could eventually be used to repay US oil companies ConocoPhillips and Exxon Mobil for their losses in the country, but only after Venezuela's economy is stabilised.
PDVSA board member Wills Rangel, who is also a union leader, said the US will need to buy at international prices if the country wants Venezuelan oil.
"If they want to buy it, they will have it in due time, sold at the international price," Rangel said.
"Not the way (Trump) intends, as if that oil belongs to them because we supposedly owe them. We do not owe anything to the United States."
Additional reporting Jackie Fox and Conor Macauley
