Daijiworld Media Network - Washington
Washington, Dec 17: US President Donald Trump on Tuesday sharply escalated pressure on Venezuela, announcing a blockade of all “sanctioned oil tankers” entering and leaving the South American nation, in a move aimed at choking the Maduro government’s oil revenues.
In a post on his social media platform Truth Social, Trump claimed Venezuela was “completely surrounded by the largest Armada ever assembled in the history of South America” and warned that the pressure would intensify further. “It will only get bigger, and the shock to them will be like nothing they have ever seen before,” he said.
Trump stated that he had ordered a “total and complete blockade of all sanctioned oil tankers” moving in and out of Venezuela, alleging that President Nicolás Maduro’s regime was using oil income to finance illicit activities, including what he termed “drug terrorism”.
The United States has previously sanctioned several individuals linked to the Venezuelan leadership, including three nephews of Maduro, and has carried out military strikes against vessels in the Caribbean suspected of carrying narcotics.
White House chief of staff Susie Wiles, speaking in an interview published as part of a two-part profile in Vanity Fair, said Trump was determined to intensify operations against Venezuela. “He wants to keep on blowing boats up until Maduro cries uncle,” she was quoted as saying.
Tensions further escalated last week when US forces seized an oil tanker in waters near Venezuela. The vessel, identified as Skipper, was a sanctioned tanker allegedly used to transport restricted oil from Venezuela and Iran. According to maritime intelligence firm Windward, the tanker was falsely flagged as a Guyanese vessel and was carrying around 1.8 million barrels of oil at the time of seizure.
Windward noted that several other sanctioned and falsely flagged tankers were currently loitering off the Venezuelan coast, making them potential targets if the US intensifies enforcement of the blockade.
Trump has also indicated that US operations against alleged narco-trafficking networks linked to Venezuela could soon expand beyond maritime actions and extend onto land, signalling a further escalation in the standoff between Washington and Caracas.