US forces have seized an oil tanker off the coast of Venezuela, in a major escalation of Donald Trump’s four-month pressure campaign against the South American country’s dictator, Nicolás Maduro.
US forces have seized an oil tanker off the coast of Venezuela, in a major escalation of Donald Trump’s four-month pressure campaign against the South American country’s dictator, Nicolás Maduro.
I only said that becasue we’re ALL missing context. The shadow fleet tankers siezed by Europe happened months ago and we have a lot more context. But I left my comment intentionally open-ended incase more context comes out later.
For now, all we know is the Trump administration seized a shadow fleet tanker that was sanctioned by the Biden administration, thereby inforcing decisions made by Biden. Europe has done the same. If you would like to add some meaningful context then please do, it’s an interesting topic.
Yes, indeed, it’s open ended and on the surface it is consistent with a plausible follow through on existing decision.
Though the prospect of suspiciously selective enforcement comes to mind, in the midst of this very specific scenario they decide to execute a seizure that is conveniently adjacent to the boat strike operations.