U.S. chasing another sanctioned oil tanker with alleged ties to Venezuela, official says

World ·New A U.S. Coast Guard vessel is shown in Miami on March 6. The coast guard has been involved in the seizure of two oil tankers off Venezuela since Dec. 10 and was pursuing another tanker on Sunday.(Marco Bello/Reuters) This handout image from the U.S. Department of Homeland Security shows a U.S. military helicopter flying over an intercepted oil tanker in the Caribbean Sea on Saturday.(U.S. Department of Homeland Security/Reuters) U.S. Coast Guard pursuing oil tanker it accuses of helping Venezuela skirt sanctions: official Trump cites U.S. investments for pressure tactics on Venezuela and its leader Maduro The U.S. Coast Guard on Sunday was pursuing another sanctioned oil tanker in the Caribbean Sea as the Trump administration appeared to be intensifying its targeting of such vessels connected to the Venezuelan government. The pursuit of the tanker, which was confirmed by a U.S. official briefed on the operation, comes after the administration announced on Saturday it had seized a tanker for the second time in less than two weeks. The official, who was not authorized to comment publicly about the ongoing operation and spoke on the condition of anonymity, said Sunday's pursuit involved "a sanctioned dark fleet vessel that is part of Venezuela's illegal sanctions evasion." The official said the vessel was flying a false flag and under a judicial seizure order. The coast guard's pursuit of the tanker was first reported by Reuters. WATCH | Why Trump is at war with Venezuela: Saturday's predawn seizure of a Panama-flagged vessel called Centuries targeted what the White House described as a "falsely flagged vessel operating as part of the Venezuelan shadow fleet to traffic stolen oil." The coast guard, with assistance from the U.S. navy, seized a sanctioned tanker called Skipper on Dec. 10 , another part of the shadow fleet of tankers that the U.S. says operates on the fringes of the law to move sanctioned cargo. It was not even flying a country's flag when it was seized by the coast guard. After that first seizure, President Donald Trump said the U.S. would carry out a "blockade" of Venezuela . It all comes as Trump has ratcheted up his rhetoric toward Venezuelan President Nicolás Maduro. This past week, Trump demanded that Venezuela return assets that it seized from U.S. oil companies years ago, justifying anew his announcement of a "blockade" against oil tankers travelling to or from the South American country that face U.S. sanctions. Trump cited the lost U.S. investments in Venezuela when asked about his newest tactic in a pressure campaign against Maduro, suggesting the Republican administration's moves are at least somewhat motivated by disputes over oil investments, along with accusations of drug trafficking. Some sanctioned tankers already are diverting away from Venezuela. U.S. oil companies dominated Venezuela's petroleum industry until the country's leaders moved to nationalize the sector, first in the 1970s and again in the 21st century under Maduro and his predecessor, Hugo Chávez. Compensation offered by Venezuela was deemed insufficient, and in 2014, an...

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