United States President Donald Trump has said that the US has seized a sanctioned oil tanker close to the coast of Venezuela, in a move that has caused oil prices to spike and further escalates tensions with Caracas.“We’ve just seized a tanker on the coast of Venezuela, large tanker, very large, largest one ever, actually, and other things are happening,” Trump said on Wednesday.Recommended Stories list of 1 itemend of listThe Venezuelan government called the move an act of “international piracy”, and “blatant theft”.This comes as the US expands its military operations in the region, where it has been carrying out air strikes on at least 21 suspected drug-trafficking vessels since September. The Trump administration has provided no evidence that these boats were carrying drugs, however.Here is what we know about the seizure of the Venezuelan tanker:What happened?The US said it intercepted and seized a large oil tanker off the coast of Venezuela, marking the first operation of its kind in years.The last comparable US military seizure of a foreign tanker occurred in 2014, when US Navy SEALs boarded the Morning Glory off Cyprus as Libyan rebels attempted to sell stolen crude oil.The Trump administration did not identify the vessel or disclose the precise location of the operation.However, Bloomberg reported that officials had described the ship as a “stateless vessel” and said it had been docked in Venezuela.Soon after announcing the latest operation on Wednesday, US Attorney General Pam Bondi released a video showing two helicopters approaching …
