On January 21, the South American Command (SOUTHCOM) confirmed that it had arrested the motor Vessel Sagitta flying the Liberian flag. The incident is within the framework of US President Donald Trump's blockade order for sanctioned ships operating in the Caribbean Sea.
Sagitta is an oil tanker owned and managed by a company in Hong Kong (China). Notably, this ship was once on the US Treasury Department's sanctions list related to the Russia-Ukraine conflict in 2022.
Before being arrested, the ship had turned off its positioning device for more than 2 months since leaving the Baltic Sea in Northern Europe.
The US side accused Sagitta of illegally receiving oil from Venezuela. SOUTHCOM released aerial footage showing the ship moving at sea but did not disclose details of whether the Coast Guard would land on the deck as in previous incidents.
The US military announcement affirmed that the arrest shows determination to ensure that "only legally regulated oil is allowed to leave Venezuela".
This move is the latest step in the overall US strategy since President Nicolas Maduro was arrested by the US on January 3. The Trump administration is seeking to seize full control of the oil exploitation and distribution process of this South American nation.
The US goal is to create cash revenue to rebuild the Venezuelan oil and gas industry. US officials consider the seizure of oil tankers as a way to generate cash flow.
At the White House, President Trump revealed that the US had seized a total of 50 million barrels of oil from Venezuela. "We are selling this oil to the open market. We are pulling oil prices to an astonishing low," Mr. Trump declared.
The oil tanker seizure campaign was launched on December 10 last year. Most of the ships were intercepted right in the waters near Venezuela. In the case of the Bella 1 ship, it was chased and seized as far as the North Atlantic in early January when it was trying to turn around and run towards Europe.
