<
https://apnews.com/article/trump-tanker-seized-venezuela-maduro-0a148ba01684fc6ce1a228dd276732c0>
"WASHINGTON (
AP) — President Donald Trump said Wednesday that the United
States has seized an oil tanker off the coast of Venezuela as tensions mount
with the government of President Nicolás Maduro.
Using U.S. forces to take control of a merchant ship is incredibly unusual and
marks the Trump administration’s latest push to increase pressure on Maduro,
who has been charged with narcoterrorism in the United States. The U.S. has
built up the largest military presence in the region in decades and launched a
series of deadly strikes on alleged drug-smuggling boats in the Caribbean Sea
and eastern Pacific Ocean. The campaign is facing growing scrutiny from
Congress.
“We’ve just seized a tanker on the coast of Venezuela, a large tanker, very
large, largest one ever seized, actually,” Trump told reporters at the White
House, later adding that “it was seized for a very good reason.”
Trump did not offer additional details. When asked what would happen to the oil
aboard the tanker, Trump said, “Well, we keep it, I guess.”
The seizure was led by the U.S. Coast Guard and supported by the Navy,
according to a U.S. official who was not authorized to comment publicly and
spoke on the condition of anonymity. The official added that it was conducted
under U.S. law enforcement authority."
Via Joyce Donahue.
Cheers,
*** Xanni ***
--
mailto:xanni@xanadu.net Andrew Pam
http://xanadu.com.au/ Chief Scientist, Xanadu
https://glasswings.com.au/ Partner, Glass Wings
https://sericyb.com.au/ Manager, Serious Cybernetics
