An oil tanker sanctioned by the United States, which has been pursued by American forces since the 21st, decided to paint a Russian flag on the hull in an attempt to pass itself off as a Moscow vessel and make eventual seizure more difficult. The information was revealed by the newspaper The New York Times this Tuesday (30).
According to US government sources, interviewed by Timesthe crew of the oil tanker Bella 1 adopted the strategy during their escape in the Atlantic Ocean, after the United States Coast Guard tried to intercept the ship in the Caribbean Sea. At the time of the attempted interception, the vessel was heading towards Venezuela to load oil, placing it on the route of the siege imposed by President Donald Trump against the regime of Nicolás Maduro.
According to American officials cited by the Timesthe Bella 1 has been under sanctions since last year for transporting Iranian oil, an activity that, according to Washington, contributes to the financing of terrorist groups. The ship is part of the so-called “ghost fleet”, used by Iran, Russia and Venezuela to circumvent international sanctions and maintain oil exports.
Authorities said the Coast Guard attempted to board the tanker after finding that it did not display a valid national flag, which would have made it subject to inspection under international maritime law. Still, the ship did not obey orders and continued sailing, behavior considered unusual for a civilian vessel.
According to the newspaper, Bella 1 turned off its location transponder on December 17, which prevented public tracking of the ship in the following days. Satellite images, however, indicated recent changes in route, with the tanker apparently moving away from the Mediterranean and sailing towards the North Atlantic, possibly heading towards areas near Greenland or Iceland.
In recent weeks, the United States has tightened its actions in the Caribbean in an attempt to stifle the Maduro regime, affecting the oil sector, the main source of income for the Chavista dictatorship. In recent days, American forces seized two sanctioned oil tankers. This month, President Donald Trump announced a total blockade of sanctioned oil tankers entering and leaving Venezuela.
