Yankees Hijack Third Oil Tanker of Venezuela

We hereby share an unofficial translation of an article published by A Nova Democracia (AND).

Yankees Hijack Third Oil Tanker of Venezuela; Maduro Commands the Navy to Defend the Ships

US imperialism continued its offensive against Venezuela this weekend by seizing another ship loaded with Venezuelan oil in international waters. This is the third oil tanker illegally seized by the United States in a few weeks, according to complaints by the government of Nicolás Maduro, which reacted by ordering the mobilization of the Venezuelan Navy to escort ships and try to prevent further seizures in the Caribbean.

The most recent seizure reportedly affected an oil tanker, the Centuries, and had an immediate impact on Venezuelan oil exports. Shipping companies began to back down in the face of the risk of seizures, while the naval blockade imposed by the United States intensified, accompanied by an increase in US military presence in the Caribbean region.

Caracas denounced the action as “international piracy” and a flagrant violation of maritime law, stating that there is no legal authorization for the US to intercept civilian vessels in international waters. The Venezuelan government also took the case to diplomatic forums, while China publicly condemned the seizure as a “serious violation,” confirming the international dimension of the crisis and the growing isolation of the US position.

History shows that such actions are the policy of imperialism. Without a formal declaration of war, without the backing of multilateral organizations, and in violation of international law, the United States resorts to military force to impose sanctions, seize strategic assets, and deepen the economic siege against an oppressed nation, using its military power as an instrument of political coercion.

This type of offensive is part of a broader strategy of militarization of the Latin American subcontinent. Under the pretext of “sanctions,” “the fight against narco-terrorism,” or “energy security,” the United States seeks to consolidate its military presence in the Caribbean and the Southern Latinamerica, while attempting to deter imperialist rivals, such as Russia and mainly China, and reaffirm its global control over strategic routes and natural resources.

In addition, Venezuela is being used as a scapegoat to legitimize a counterinsurgency policy. The naval blockade, the rhetoric of “security,” and the expansion of military presence in countries such as Peru, Ecuador, and Bolivia create dangerous precedents that can be applied against other countries in the region, including Brazil, especially when one of the recurring justifications of Yankee imperialism is the supposed fight against “criminal organizations” of Brazilian origin.

In light of this serious escalation, the complicit silence of the Brazilian government is striking. The same government that, until recently, questioned the results of the elections in Venezuela and vetoed the country’s entry into the BRICS, now remains silent in the face of a direct attack on the sovereignty of its neighbor, revealing its complete diplomatic submission to Yankee imperialism and its inability and unwillingness to defend regional independence.

The successive hijacking of Venezuelan oil tankers is not only an economic aggression, but also a concrete threat to the sovereignty of the peoples of Latin America. The normalization of these illegal actions paves the way for new interventions, increases the risk of military escalation, and brutally exposes the warmongering and violating nature of Yankee imperialism, whose offensive demands the vigilance and constant denunciation of the oppressed peoples of the continent.