Dec 13, 2025 - Politics & Policy

U.S. unseals warrant behind oil tanker seizure near Venezuela

Lauren Floyd

Three men sitting at a board table — President Trump talks with business leaders at a White House roundtable where he addressed the U.S. seizure of a Venezuelan oil tanker. Photo: Alex Wong/Getty Images

A newly unsealed warrant shows the U.S. Coast Guard seized the M/T Skipper, a crude oil tanker intercepted off Venezuela, just before the warrant was set to expire on Wednesday.

Why it matters: The move comes as the Trump administration layers on new U.S. sanctions against Venezuelan oil shipping networks and Venezuelan leader Nicolás Maduro's inner circle, aiming to raise the risks for companies moving the country's crude.

The sanctions escalate the Trump administration's campaign to choke off what it calls illicit oil flows tied to Iran and Maduro's government in Caracas.

Driving the news: The warrant, signed by U.S. magistrate judge Zia Faruqui on Nov. 26, was obtained under federal law that authorizes seizure of all assets "engaged in planning or perpetrating any Federal crime of terrorism," according to a Friday news release from the U.S. attorney general's office for D.C.

What they're saying: "The FBI's Counterintelligence Division and our partners will continue to enforce U.S. sanctions and cut off our adversaries from financial markets and critical technology," FBI Director Kash Patel said in the news release.

He added that the seizure highlights the success of "efforts to impose costs on the governments of Venezuela and Iran."

Zoom out: Oil prices are falling despite the strife because a global supply surplus is outpacing demand growth, Venezuela's output is relatively small in the world market, and traders are less inclined to price in geopolitical risk, Axios' Ben Geman wrote on Friday.

Go deeper: Why oil is chill despite rising heat on Venezuela

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U.S. unseals warrant behind oil tanker seizure near Venezuela

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