US pursuing third oil tanker near the water of Venezuela

The U.S. Coast Guard is pursuing an oil tanker in international waters near Venezuela, , in what would ⁠be the second such operation this weekend and the third in less than two weeks if successful.



According to US officials the United States Coast Guard is in active pursuit of a sanctioned dark fleet vessel that is part of Venezuela's illegal sanctions evasion," and it is flying a false flag and under a judicial seizure order.



The officials, who spoke on the condition of anonymity, did not give a specific location for the operation or name the vessel being pursued.



The White House did not immediately respond to a request for comment.



U.S. President Donald Trump last week announced a "blockade" of all oil tankers under sanctions entering and leaving Venezuela.



Trump's pressure campaign on Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro has included a ramped-up military presence in the region and more than two dozen military strikes on vessels in the Pacific Ocean and Caribbean Sea near the South American nation.



At least 100 ⁠people have been killed in the attacks.



The first two oil tankers seized were operating on the black market and providing oil to countries under sanctions



But one oil trader said the seizures may push oil prices slightly higher when Asian trading resumes.



Another analyst said the seizures raise geopolitical risks and are likely to increase friction in the shadow fleet of vessels that move oil from sanctioned countries like Venezuela, Russia and Iran.