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US Moves to Seize Russian-Flagged Shadow Fleet Tanker Hauling Venezuelan Oil
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The United States is preparing a possible interception of a Russian-flagged oil tanker in the Atlantic Ocean as part of an expanded maritime enforcement campaign targeting sanctioned energy shipments, according to US intelligence sources cited by CBS News on January 5.
The vessel, now operating under the name Marinera, is transporting Venezuelan crude and previously sailed under the name Bella 1, flying the Panamanian flag. A Turkish company formerly owned the tanker before being re-registered under Russian jurisdiction, the sources said.
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According to officials familiar with the plans, US forces are considering boarding the tanker as early as this week, though the operation could still be called off depending on conditions at sea and diplomatic developments.
The ship has been under US sanctions since 2024 for its alleged role in transporting Russian, Iranian, and Venezuelan oil on behalf of Hezbollah and Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps.
US authorities consider the tanker part of Russia’s so-called “shadow fleet,” a network of vessels used to bypass international sanctions on energy exports.
UPDATE: 05JAN26 1700Z - US military air movements to UK that *might* be linked to possible boarding action of M/T BELLA 1 / MARINERA.
— DefenceGeek 🇬🇧 (@DefenceGeek) January 5, 2026
At least 1 MH-47G has done a test flight & C-17 arrivals pace has slowed, but P-8s continue to patrol near the M/T. CV-22Bs still carrying out… pic.twitter.com/DUwLNES91l
In December 2025, the United States Coast Guard began tracking and pursuing Bella 1 in the Atlantic, with plans to board and seize the ship. That effort was suspended after the vessel was transferred to a new owner, renamed Marinera, and reflagged as Russian. The tanker now lists Sochi as its home port.
Washington has previously seized two tankers carrying Venezuelan oil—The Skipper and Centuries—as part of the same enforcement campaign.
Russia formally protested the pursuit, submitting a diplomatic note to Washington demanding that the US halt efforts to intercept the tanker.
CBS News also reported that US intelligence officials had learned of discussions among Venezuelan authorities about placing armed personnel aboard oil tankers—disguised as civilian crew—and potentially deploying portable, Soviet-era air defense systems on commercial vessels.
Those discussions reportedly took place before the recent US operation that led to the capture of Nicolás Maduro and his wife.
Officials familiar with the current planning said Washington would prefer to seize the vessel rather than sink it, modeling the operation on a recent boarding in which US Marines and special operations forces, working alongside the Coast Guard, took control of The Skipper after it departed a Venezuelan port.
Earlier, a sanctioned Russian oil tanker attempting to deliver fuel to Venezuela was repeatedly forced to turn back after a US Navy destroyer positioned itself directly in its path.
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