NATO officials are monitoring at least three more suspected Russian oil tankers in the Atlantic – fuelling speculation Washington is gearing up for another daring raid.
It comes amid Donald Trump’s crackdown on sanction-busting vessels accused of dodging the US president’s oil blockade around Venezuela.
The latest “Russian” tankers, the Vesna, Veronica III and Bertha, are believed to be racing towards Europe in a desperate bid to flee Trump’s forces.
The three ships are reportedly taking the same route as the Marinera – the rust bucket “shadow fleet” vessel that British forces helped intercept on Wednesday.
All sanctioned by either the US or UK, the trio are part of 16 other boats across the Atlantic also believed to have bypassed the Venezuela blockade.
It comes after US special forces swooped in on another vessel named Olina accused of dodging Trump‘s Venezuela sanctions on Friday – becoming the fifth tanker seized by Washington.
The Vesna, Veronica III and Bertha are on their way to either Africa or Europe according to satellite imagery – but their exact destinations are unknown.
They are being followed by a US navy destroyer, The New York Times reported.
Washington officials are reportedly expecting more boardings of sanctioned vessels in the near future.
Nato sources said its UK-based officials were tracking the rogue boats as part of the defence pact’s Allied Maritime Command (MARCOM).
A Nato official said: “There’s a lot of information sharing and analysis that comes from Marcom.
“The decisions to plausibly or potentially interdict the vessel come from allies, not the alliance, and allies make those decisions for their own national reasons.”
They added: “Allies are looking at specific vessels of interest that may be some sort of national security threat.”
It comes after dramatic footage showed armed forces abseiling from a helicopter before swarming the sanctioned Olina, reportedly falsely flying the flag of Timor-Leste, near Trinidad.
Closing in, the marines throw what appears to be a distraction grenade which explodes aboard the tanker.
Two US officials confirmed the swoop, conducted by the Coast Guard and Joint Task Force Southern Spear, took place overnight.
Alongside the footage the US Southern Command said the seizure sent a clear message: “There is no safe haven for criminals.”
It added: “In a pre-dawn action, Marines and Sailors from Joint Task Force Southern Spear, in coordination with the Department of Homeland Security, launched from the USS Gerald R. Ford and apprehended Motor/Tanker Olina in the Caribbean Sea without incident.”
Trump shared the news triumphantly, writing: “Today, the United States of America, in coordination with the Interim Authorities of Venezuela, seized an oil tanker which departed Venezuela without our approval.
It comes amid Washington’s efforts to control Venezuelan oil exports following the extraordinary capture of its leader Nicolas Maduro.
The Olina left Venezuela last week fully loaded with oil as part of a flotilla shortly after US strikes on the territory.
And the vessel was returning fully loaded to Venezuela following the US blockade of Venezuelan oil exports, the source added.
The US imposed sanctions on the tanker in January last year.
Washington claimed the ship was part of a shadow fleet of vessels that sail with little regulation or known insurance.
It is the fifth seizure of a vessel alleged to be carrying sanctioned oil since December, and the third this week.
It follows the boarding of the Sophia, also in the Caribbean, and the Marinera, a Russia-flagged vessel apprehended in the North Atlantic with RAF support.
It comes as Trump said the US will run Venezuela for years and give its oil riches to the people.
He said: “We will rebuild it in a very profitable way.
“We’re going to be using oil, and we’re going to be taking oil. We’re getting oil prices down, and we’re going to be giving money to Venezuela, which they desperately need.”
Secretary of State Marcus Rubio, dubbed the “Viceroy of Venezuela”, has unveiled Washington’s plans for Venezuela’s huge oil supply – the largest in the world.
The deal includes the Latin American country giving up 30 to 50 million barrels of oil.
