Vessel will go to US port; legal process will be followed for possession of oil: White House on oil tanker seized off Venezuela's coast

Washington DC [US], December 12 (ANI): A day after President Donald Trump stated that a "very large" oil tanker was seized off the coast of Venezuela by the US, the White House said that the tanker will now be taken to an American port, while the crude oil cargo will be seized only after completion of due legal procedure.
During a White House press briefing on Thursday (local time), Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt stated that the vessel, named Skipper, is currently undergoing a formal forfeiture process, following which it will be brought to a US port.
"The vessel is currently undergoing a forfeiture process right now. The United States currently has a full investigative team on the ground on the vessel, and individuals on board the vessel are being interviewed, and any relevant evidence is being seized," Leavitt said.
"With respect to the oil, that's a different issue. The vessel will go to a US port, and the United States does intend to seize the oil. However, there is a legal process for the seizure of that oil, and that legal process will be followed," she added.
This comes a day after President Trump stated that Washington had seized an oil tanker off the coast of Venezuela on Wednesday.
Speaking to reporters at the White House, Trump said, "As you probably know, we've just seized a tanker on the coast of Venezuela. A large tanker, very large. Largest one ever seized, actually."
Later, US Attorney General Pamela Bondi confirmed the seizure of the tanker, noting that the ship was transporting "sanctioned oil" from Venezuela and Iran.
"Today, the Federal Bureau of Investigation, Homeland Security Investigations, and the United States Coast Guard, with support from the Department of War, executed a seizure warrant for a crude oil tanker used to transport sanctioned oil from Venezuela and Iran. For multiple years, the oil tanker has been sanctioned by the United States due to its involvement in an illicit oil shipping network supporting foreign terrorist organizations. This seizure, completed off the coast of Venezuela, was conducted safely and securely--and our investigation alongside the Department of Homeland Security to prevent the transport of sanctioned oil continues," Bondi said in a post on X, sharing unclassified visuals of the seizure.
According to CNN, citing a senior US official, the seizure occurred in international waters and was carried out without incident or injury to either US personnel or the tanker's crew. The vessel, which had been en route to Cuba, was ultimately intended for Asia after being brokered through Cuban intermediaries, the official added.
The US indicated that further seizures could occur in the coming weeks as pressure on the Maduro regime continues.
The tanker, named Skipper and previously known as Adisa, was transporting Venezuelan crude. It had been sanctioned by the US in 2022 for facilitating oil trades on behalf of Hezbollah and Iran's Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps-Quds Force, as reported by CNN.
Following the seizure, the Venezuelan government condemned it, describing it as an "act of international piracy" in a statement released Wednesday.
The operation is part of a broader US campaign to pressure Venezuela, which has involved deploying thousands of troops and a carrier strike group to the Caribbean, targeting suspected drug vessels, and issuing repeated warnings to President Maduro, CNN reported.
According to US reports, these operations have resulted in 87 fatalities and the destruction of 23 alleged drug boats. (ANI)