Russia has formally asked the United States to abandon its attempt to capture an oil tanker that the United States has been trying to intercept in the Atlantic, as per a report by Reuters.
The involved tanker is believed to carry high-quality diesel oil from the country’s Far Eastern
The ship, being traced by maritime tracking organizations as “Bella 1,” has been chased for the better part of two weeks, according to a report by Reuters. The ship was headed to Venezuela when the U.S. law enforcement sought to board it in the Caribbean. The ship turned back towards the Atlantic after the incident, changing its identity, such as painting a Russian flag on its side.
The New York Times was the first to point out Russia’s diplomatic request as per two people who were familiar with that information as per The New York Times.
There appear to be indications that the vessel changed its registration as well. Reuters recently quoted the vessel’s registration in Russian records as ‘Marinera’ with a Black Sea port, and an ex-Treasury official who served as a sanctions officer told Reuters that it was ‘uncertain if the “overnight” flag registration would qualify’.
“A U.S. official told the Times that the Trump administration still considers the ship ‘stateless’ and that it was flying a ‘false flag’ operation when first intercepted.”
This is in a period when the administration is increasing pressure on Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro. On Wednesday, the U.S. Treasury designated four firms allegedly operating in Venezuela’s oil industry, along with oil tankers related to them, the U.S. Treasury Department said.
