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U.S. President Donald Trump has announced a full blockade of all oil tankers under sanctions that are either heading to or departing from Venezuela, according to Bloomberg and his post on Truth Social.
Trump described Venezuela as “completely surrounded by the largest armada ever assembled in South American history,” adding that the force will continue to grow and will be “an unprecedented shock” for the country.
He stated the blockade will remain in effect until Venezuela returns to the United States “all the oil, land, and other assets previously stolen from us.” Trump also labeled Venezuelan President Nicolás Maduro’s regime as a “foreign terrorist organization,” accusing it of using oil from “stolen fields to fund itself, drug terrorism, human trafficking, killings, and kidnappings.”
“Today, I am issuing an order for a full blockade of all sanctioned oil tankers going to and from Venezuela… America will not allow criminals, terrorists, or other nations to steal, threaten, or harm our country, nor will we allow a hostile regime to take our oil, land, or other assets that must be returned immediately,” Trump wrote.
Earlier, Trump had announced he would address the nation tomorrow at 21:00 U.S. time (04:00 Kyiv time), but the content of the speech remains unknown.
Context of U.S.-Venezuela tensions
Bloomberg notes that the blockade represents an escalation of pressure on Maduro, whom the Trump administration accuses of running drug trafficking operations.
Last week, the U.S. seized a sanctioned oil tanker off Venezuela’s coast. Additionally, a fleet of four tankers initially headed for Venezuela changed course after the seizure of the tanker Skipper.
The Pentagon has reportedly conducted over 20 strikes on vessels suspected of drug trafficking near Venezuelan and Colombian waters, resulting in dozens of casualties.
Trump has repeatedly stated that the U.S. could target land-based facilities and that Maduro should be removed from power. In response, Maduro’s government condemned U.S. actions as an attempt to seize Venezuela’s oil reserves, the largest in the world.
