Welcome to DU! The truly grassroots left-of-center political community where regular people, not algorithms, drive the discussions and set the standards. Join the community: Create a free account Support DU (and get rid of ads!): Become a Star Member Latest Breaking News Editorials & Other Articles General Discussion The DU Lounge All Forums Issue Forums Culture Forums Alliance Forums Region Forums Support Forums Help & Search

ForgoTheConsequence

(5,159 posts)
Wed Dec 10, 2025, 02:07 PM Wednesday

US Seizes Oil Tanker Off the Coast of Venezuela

Source: Bloomberg

US forces have intercepted and seized a sanctioned oil tanker off the coast of Venezuela, according to people familiar with the matter, a move that marks a serious escalation of tensions between the two countries.
The White House didn’t immediately respond to a request for comment. State oil company Petroleos de Venezuela SA and Venezuela’s oil and information ministries didn’t immediately reply to requests for comment.
The seizure may make it much harder for Venezuela to export its oil, as other shippers are now likely to be more reluctant to load its cargoes. Most Venezuelan oil goes to China, usually through intermediaries, at steep discounts owing to sanctions risk.

Read more: https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2025-12-10/us-seizes-oil-tanker-off-the-coast-of-venezuela

26 replies = new reply since forum marked as read
Highlight: NoneDon't highlight anything 5 newestHighlight 5 most recent replies
US Seizes Oil Tanker Off the Coast of Venezuela (Original Post) ForgoTheConsequence Wednesday OP
The MAGA plan to lower gas prices IronLionZion Wednesday #1
Wait, drugs?..................... Lovie777 Wednesday #2
More Pressure roscoeroscoe Wednesday #3
Oh, this is just great Jilly_in_VA Wednesday #4
Short answer...YES NotHardly Wednesday #11
A definite act of war Bayard Wednesday #5
&%%@&#*[&# ?!!!! electric_blue68 Wednesday #6
Aren't they allowed to sell oil to China? OC375 Wednesday #7
The Epstein files are still due on the 19th. gab13by13 Wednesday #8
What time on the 19th? JustABozoOnThisBus Wednesday #9
Wag, wag, dog, dog. jeffreyi Wednesday #10
WTF? So they're adding hijacking and felony theft to the murder charges? Vinca Wednesday #12
MADE YOU LOOK AWAY FROM EPSTEIN, BECAUSE HE CAN'T usonian Wednesday #13
Sanctions, except for Chevron muriel_volestrangler Wednesday #14
Wouldn't this be considered PIRACY??? ProudMNDemocrat Wednesday #15
Never thought I would see the US viewed as a terrorist country. walkingman Wednesday #16
the real reason we seized it moonshinegnomie Wednesday #17
... Solly Mack Wednesday #18
On top of everything else... S/V Loner Wednesday #19
Are we actively trying to provoke a war? COL Mustard Wednesday #20
Christ on a pogo stick lonely bird Wednesday #21
MSNOW was suggesting earlier this evening TomSlick Wednesday #22
False flag. The ship can be seized legally by anyone. The only pirate here is the Russian oligarch that owns the ship. mathematic Thursday #23
Pro Tip From My Journal littlemissmartypants Thursday #24
Maye we should not be so quick to hop on this story AverageOldGuy Thursday #25
If troops go on land and into the jungle duckworth969 Thursday #26

Bayard

(28,242 posts)
5. A definite act of war
Wed Dec 10, 2025, 02:18 PM
Wednesday

Who approved that exactly? Notice they didn't bomb this one. Venezuela's economy is going to go bust if this continues, and of course, they'll surrender to anything trump wants.

electric_blue68

(25,429 posts)
6. &%%@&#*[&# ?!!!!
Wed Dec 10, 2025, 02:24 PM
Wednesday

This crazed bastard needs to be impeached and convicted right now!!

(should have been already, but...)

JustABozoOnThisBus

(24,551 posts)
9. What time on the 19th?
Wed Dec 10, 2025, 02:50 PM
Wednesday

I want to know when to start holding my breath ...

As if the files are being released.

jeffreyi

(2,495 posts)
10. Wag, wag, dog, dog.
Wed Dec 10, 2025, 03:01 PM
Wednesday

People who are way smarter than I am assure us this will worsening before bettering.

muriel_volestrangler

(105,431 posts)
14. Sanctions, except for Chevron
Wed Dec 10, 2025, 03:51 PM
Wednesday
PDVSA, the state oil company, works with a handful of international partners including Houston-based Chevron Corp. to drill in many parts of the country. Under the current arrangement, Chevron receives a percentage of the oil produced by its joint ventures with PDVSA. A license issued by the US Treasury exempts the US company from sanctions.

So, not real "sanctions", if you exclude a major company from your own country. More like a protection racket.

walkingman

(10,235 posts)
16. Never thought I would see the US viewed as a terrorist country.
Wed Dec 10, 2025, 06:40 PM
Wednesday

Time for Congress to impeach him before he kills any more people. The man is nuts.

moonshinegnomie

(3,800 posts)
17. the real reason we seized it
Wed Dec 10, 2025, 07:00 PM
Wednesday

venezula produces type of crude that is perfect for texas refineries....

TomSlick

(12,846 posts)
22. MSNOW was suggesting earlier this evening
Wed Dec 10, 2025, 09:54 PM
Wednesday

that there was a seizure order for the ship resulting from prior shipments to Iran.

That's the only explanation I have heard. If there is not something like that, this is an act of piracy.

mathematic

(1,601 posts)
23. False flag. The ship can be seized legally by anyone. The only pirate here is the Russian oligarch that owns the ship.
Thu Dec 11, 2025, 12:09 AM
Thursday

I hope we seize the rest of the Russian shadow fleet, too.

littlemissmartypants

(31,229 posts)
24. Pro Tip From My Journal
Thu Dec 11, 2025, 04:15 AM
Thursday
📌 There are several workarounds for paywalls. You will find them here:
https://archive.ph/

https://www.smry.ai/

https://www.removepaywall.com/

https://freedium.cfd/

●Bypass Paywalls Clean is one of the most powerful paywall removers available today. It eliminates the limitations of all other tools in this list.

Snip...you will need to install it manually. The extension is available on all major platforms, including mobile; however, since it requires manual steps, you need to follow different complex steps to set up on the devices.

Another limitation is that the extension works locally; you cannot share paywall-free versions with others. They will also need to install the extension to read the paywall-free version from their end. Despite these limitations, since it is a one-time setup, it works seamlessly for everyday use without dealing with links.

Set up instructions at the link.

https://techpp.com/2025/09/01/best-12ft-ladder-alternatives/#5_Best_12ft_Ladder_Alternatives


Paywall Removers and other similar apps like 12ft Ladder
https://alternativeto.net/software/12ft-ladder/



15 FREE 12ft Ladder Alternatives to Remove Paywalls in 2025
By Stefan Campbell
Last Updated on April 23, 2024
https://thesmallbusinessblog.com/12ft-ladder-alternatives/



13 Best 12ft Ladder Alternatives That Work In 2025
March 11, 2025
https://rigorousthemes.com/blog/best-12-foot-ladder-alternatives/


Archive Buttons (works with varying degrees of success) https://www.archivebuttons.com/


This post is for educational purposes only.

Posted Fri Oct 10, 2025, 03:35 PM in Main » Latest Breaking News (0 replies)
Link to OP:
https://democraticunderground.com/?com=view_post&forum=1014&pid=3545226

Additional information:
The Archives search I did on 11 Dec 2025 earlier revealed that the article has been entered into the archives here:

10 Dec 2025 23:27:30 UTC
https://archive.is/20251210232730/https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2025-12-10/us-seizes-oil-tanker-off-the-coast-of-venezuela


👋❤️

AverageOldGuy

(3,252 posts)
25. Maye we should not be so quick to hop on this story
Thu Dec 11, 2025, 08:51 AM
Thursday

While it's easy to attack Trump as a pirate for this seizure, it appears the whole story is a lot more complicated.

Google information about the ship and this incident where you will find the story is long and twisted.

It seems as though this same vessel has been for years involved in some kind of international trafficking in crude oil that was designed to avoid sanctions on Iran and Russia, a scheme that went on for years and is still going on.

It also now appears that the ship was broadcasting on ship warning radio channels one location when, in fact, it was located 100 miles away, travelling in a direction different from that being broadcast, clearly in an attempt to avoid detection.

Which raises the question of just how deeply is the Venezuelan government involved in what appears to be international petroleum smuggling and how long have they been doing it and to whose benefit?

I hate Trump as much as most and more than a lot but it appears in this incident there is a background to the story that we need to acknowledge.

duckworth969

(1,077 posts)
26. If troops go on land and into the jungle
Thu Dec 11, 2025, 09:26 AM
Thursday

We can expect American body bags.

CIA been there for a while according to Chumps own public statements.

Not only would we face Venezuelan troops, but also mercenaries, guerrillas, and cartels. They know the terrain and will have local support.

Won’t be a cakewalk if we put boots on the ground.

Latest Discussions»Latest Breaking News»US Seizes Oil Tanker Off ...