Venezuela condemns US oil tanker seizure as ‘international piracy’

Venezuela on Wednesday condemned the United States’ seizure of a sanctioned oil tanker off its coast, calling it an “act of international piracy.”

“The Bolivarian Republic of Venezuela strongly denounces and repudiates what constitutes blatant theft and an act of international piracy, publicly announced by the President of the United States, who confessed to the attack on an oil tanker in the Caribbean Sea,” the government said in a statement. official press release.

The statement, published by Correo del Orinoco, a state media outlet that regularly broadcasts official Venezuelan government announcements, frames the seizure as part of a broader campaign against the country’s sovereignty and natural resources.

Attorney General Pam Bondi said a joint operation with the Federal Bureau of Investigation, Homeland Security Investigations and the U.S. Coast Guard, with support from the War Department, executed a seizure warrant against an oil tanker allegedly used to transport sanctioned oil from Venezuela and Iran.

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US forces were seen entering the ship with weapons drawn. (@AGPamBondi via X)

“For several years, the tanker has been sanctioned by the United States due to its involvement in an illicit oil transportation network supporting foreign terrorist organizations,” she said on

Bondi released unclassified video footage of the operation that showed a helicopter approaching the large tanker and tactical personnel pushing back a rope on the deck.

Newly released footage shows US forces securing a Venezuelan tanker. (@AGPamBondi via X)

President Donald Trump announced the seizure Wednesday while speaking at a White House roundtable with business leaders.

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“As you probably know, we just seized an oil tanker off the coast of Venezuela. A large oil tanker, very large, the largest ever seized in fact,” Trump told reporters. “And other things happen. So you’ll see that later, and you’ll talk about it with other people later.”

President Donald Trump attends a roundtable discussion in the Roosevelt Room of the White House in Washington, DC, December 10, 2025. (Andrew Caballero-Reynolds/AFP via Getty Images)

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“It was seized for a very good reason,” he later added.

Asked by a reporter what would happen to the oil aboard the tanker, Trump replied: “Well, we’re keeping it, I guess.”

Shortly afterward, he said, “I guess we’ll keep the oil.” »