Trump orders blockade of ‘sanctioned oil tankers’ bound for Venezuela, escalating standoff with Maduro
WASHINGTON — President Donald Trump on Tuesday ordered what he called a “total and complete blockade” of all “sanctioned oil tankers” going into and out of Venezuela, a sweeping move that intensifies U.S. pressure on Nicolás Maduro and raises fresh legal and military questions about enforcement in the Caribbean.
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The announcement, delivered in a late-night social media post, came days after U.S. forces seized an oil tanker off Venezuela’s coast and followed a continued buildup of American naval and air assets in the region. Trump alleged Venezuela’s oil revenues fund drug trafficking and other crimes and vowed to keep expanding the U.S. military presence until the South American country “returns” oil, land and other assets to the United States — a claim with no clear legal basis. The Pentagon referred questions to the White House.
Venezuela’s government denounced the order as “a reckless and grave threat,” accusing Washington of violating international law, free trade and the principle of free navigation. Caracas said it would bring the matter to the United Nations, casting the U.S. posture as an attempt to “steal the wealth that belongs to our nation.”
The blockade threat coincides with a U.S. campaign of maritime strikes in the Caribbean and eastern Pacific that has drawn bipartisan scrutiny in Congress. At least 95 people have been killed in 25 known strikes on vessels, according to figures acknowledged by U.S. officials. The administration has defended the operations as a counter-narcotics success and rejected arguments that they stretch the bounds of lawful warfare; Trump has also said the campaign could move ashore. His chief of staff, Susie Wiles, told Vanity Fair that Trump “wants to keep on blowing boats up until Maduro cries uncle,” implying a regime-change objective.
It was not immediately clear how the United States would implement a blockade limited to “sanctioned oil tankers,” or how Washington would determine and interdict targeted ships without impeding lawful commercial traffic. The Navy currently has 11 ships in the region, including an aircraft carrier and several amphibious assault ships, backed by helicopters, V-22 Ospreys and P-8 Poseidon maritime patrol aircraft — a mix that gives the U.S. significant ability to track and board vessels near Venezuela.
Any disruption would hit the heart of Venezuela’s economy. The country, which has the world’s largest proven oil reserves and produces roughly 1 million barrels per day, has relied on oil as its fiscal lifeline. Since Washington tightened oil sanctions in 2017, state oil company PDVSA has turned to a murky fleet of unflagged tankers to move crude into global supply chains, often at steep discounts. Of the approximately 850,000 barrels exported daily, about 80% goes to China, 15% to 17% reaches the U.S. via Chevron Corp. under limited allowances, and the remainder is sent to Cuba, said Francisco Monaldi, a Venezuelan oil expert at Rice University.
Trump has previously suggested Maduro offered stakes in oil and other mineral wealth to ease U.S. pressure — “He’s offered everything,” Trump said in October — underscoring how energy assets remain central to the geopolitical fight. Tuesday’s blockade threat appears designed to further constrict those flows.
Trump also asserted that the “Venezuelan Regime has been designated a FOREIGN TERRORIST ORGANIZATION,” though he did not specify the mechanism. The foreign terrorist organization label is typically applied to non-state groups without sovereign immunity. While the Trump administration has designated the Cartel de los Soles — a term linked to Venezuelan military officers accused of drug trafficking — as a foreign terrorist organization, Venezuela is not listed as a U.S. state sponsor of terrorism. In a rare precedent, the U.S. designated Iran’s Revolutionary Guard Corps — an arm of a sovereign government already on the state sponsors list — as an FTO during Trump’s first term.
The scope, legality and duration of any maritime blockade will hinge on forthcoming guidance from the Pentagon and Treasury, as well as responses from allies and the U.N. Security Council. For now, the order signals a significant escalation, with immediate implications for global oil flows, shipping insurers and a Venezuelan economy already battered by years of sanctions and mismanagement.
By Ali Musa
Axadle Times international–Monitoring.
