🚨 Trump Orders ‘Total and Complete Blockade’ of Sanctioned Oil Tankers to Venezuela

WASHINGTON, D.C. — In a dramatic escalation of his administration’s pressure campaign against Venezuelan President Nicolás Maduro, President Donald Trump late Tuesday ordered a “total and complete blockade of all sanctioned oil tankers” entering or leaving Venezuela. The sweeping announcement, made via the President’s social media platform, Truth Social, comes less than a week after U.S. forces seized a sanctioned oil tanker off the Venezuelan coast, a move Caracas immediately denounced as an “act of state piracy.”

The President accompanied the blockade order with the formal designation of the Venezuelan “regime” as a Foreign Terrorist Organization (FTO). In his statement, Trump accused the Maduro government of using oil revenues from “stolen Oil Fields” to finance “Drug Terrorism, Human Trafficking, Murder, and Kidnapping.” He demanded the immediate return of “all of the Oil, Land, and other Assets that they previously stole from us.”

“Venezuela is completely surrounded by the largest Armada ever assembled in the History of South America,” President Trump wrote, vowing that the U.S. military presence would “only get bigger” until his demands are met.

The move marks a significant tightening of the U.S. economic and military stranglehold on the South American nation. Venezuela’s economy is almost entirely dependent on oil exports, and while U.S. sanctions have long targeted the state-owned oil company, PDVSA, the blockade represents a direct, kinetic effort to stop the flow of crude oil, much of which is destined for China via sanctioned vessels operating in the so-called “shadow fleet.” Analysts predict that a successful implementation of a full naval blockade could devastate Venezuela’s already collapsing economy.

The administration’s military posture in the Caribbean and Eastern Pacific has been rapidly increasing in recent months, with a notable buildup of naval assets, including the presence of the aircraft carrier USS Gerald R. Ford. This military campaign has already drawn bipartisan scrutiny in Washington due to an ongoing series of strikes on small boats that the administration claims are involved in drug trafficking, operations that have reportedly resulted in scores of fatalities.

White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt confirmed the administration is “executing on the president’s sanction policies,” stating that the U.S. would not “stand by and watch sanctioned vessels sail the seas with black market oil.” The initial seizure of the tanker, named the Skipper, was justified by U.S. officials as a straight-forward sanctions enforcement action, citing a federal warrant to seize a vessel that has long been linked to an illicit oil shipping network that allegedly supports foreign terrorist organizations, including the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC).

However, legal experts have raised concerns about the use of U.S. domestic law to seize a foreign-flagged vessel in international waters, arguing that a blockade—especially one that uses military force—pushes the boundaries of international law and risks a dramatic escalation of the conflict. Venezuela’s Foreign Minister strongly condemned the blockade order, reiterating that the U.S. aggression is primarily aimed at seizing Venezuela’s natural resources.

The new FTO designation for the Venezuelan regime not only provides a new legal basis for asset seizures but also dramatically broadens the scope of U.S. measures against the country, creating significant hurdles for any nation, entity, or person providing material support to the Venezuelan government. The escalating tensions place the region on high alert, with many regional and international bodies expressing alarm over the potential for further military confrontation. Global oil markets, however, have shown a muted reaction to the news, largely due to a global supply surplus and the fact that most of Venezuela’s oil exports already bypass the traditional market. The situation remains highly volatile, promising a tense conclusion to the year in the Caribbean.

📰 Sources & Links

• Fox News: Trump declares ‘Venezuelan regime’ a foreign terrorist organization, orders oil tanker blockade
• CBS News: Trump orders “total and complete blockade” of sanctioned oil tankers in Venezuela
• The Washington Post: Trump announces ‘complete blockade’ of sanctioned oil tankers to Venezuela
• The Associated Press (via various outlets): Trump orders blockade of ‘sanctioned oil tankers’ into Venezuela, ramping up pressure on Maduro
• The Guardian: Trump orders blockade of oil tankers entering and leaving Venezuela
• Bloomberg Law: Trump Orders Blockade of Sanctioned Oil Tankers in Venezuela