US seizes second oil tanker off Venezuela as Trump ramps up blockade
The US president has been ramping up pressure on the regime of Venezuelan President Nicolás Maduro, which he accuses of being involved in the drugs trade
Another oil tanker has been seized off the coast of Venezuela by the US, according to the US Department of Homeland Security.
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America's Coast Guard led the operation, with a specialised tactical team seen boarding the ship in international waters.
Department of Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem, whose department oversees the Coast Guard, shared a video of the operation on X.
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In a pre-dawn action early this morning on Dec. 20, the US Coast Guard with the support of the Department of War apprehended an oil tanker that was last docked in Venezuela.
— Secretary Kristi Noem (@Sec_Noem) December 20, 2025
The United States will continue to pursue the illicit movement of sanctioned oil that is used to fund… pic.twitter.com/nSZ4mi6axc
In the seven-minute video, US helicopters are seen landing on the deck of a ship with the name Centuries written on the side.
"In a pre-dawn action early this morning on Dec 20, the US Coast Guard with the support of the Department of War apprehended an oil tanker that was last docked in Venezuela," Noem wrote.
"The United States will continue to pursue the illicit movement of sanctioned oil that is used to fund narco terrorism in the region."
The Centuries is a Panamanian-flagged ship, but it has reportedly sailed under the flags of Greece and Liberia in the past five years.
It comes a week after the US seized a sanctioned oil tanker, called the Skipper, off the coast of the South American nation.
The seizures link into Donald Trump's plan to place Venezuela under an embargo, as US forces steadily increase their presence in the region.
The US president has been ramping up pressure on the regime of Venezuelan President Nicolás Maduro, which he accuses of being involved in the drugs trade.
Speaking on Tuesday, the US president said: "Venezuela is completely surrounded by the largest Armada ever assembled in the History of South America.
"It will only get bigger, and the shock to them will be like nothing they have ever seen before."
In a post on his Truth social media page, the president branded Mr Maduro's regime as "illegitimate" and a "foreign terrorist organisation".
He continued: "Therefore, today, I am ordering A TOTAL AND COMPLETE BLOCKADE OF ALL SANCTIONED OIL TANKERS going into, and out of, Venezuela."
Since the seizure of the Skipper, vessels carrying millions of barrels of oil have feared interception by the US and are staying put in Venezuelan waters.
Some of these are believed to be using concealment tactics to transport goods for sanctioned countries like Russia, Iran, and Venezuela - known as the "shadow fleet".
More than 70 oil tankers in Venezuelan waters this week are said to be part of this fleet, according to data from TankerTrackers.com.
Among them, some 38 have been sanctioned by the US Treasury.
Elsewhere, Trump has authorised lethal strikes against ships he claims are trafficking drugs in the Caribbean and Eastern Pacific.
President Maduro says the US is trying to overthrow him to gain access to Venezuela's oil reserves.