Maduro Accuses U.S. of 'Kidnapping' Crew After Military Seizure of Oil Tanker by U.S.

Venezuela's authoritarian President Nicolás Maduro accused the United States of "kidnapping" the crew of a seized oil tanker, escalating tensions between the countries after U.S. federal agencies carried out a maritime operation targeting a vessel accused of transporting sanctioned crude from Venezuela and Iran.

U.S. officials said the tanker (identified as the Skipper) was seized by the FBI, Homeland Security Investigations and the U.S. Coast Guard. According to satellite data, the ship attempted to mask its location by transmitting false coordinates.

Maduro, who did not initially comment on the operation, addressed it on Thursday during a public event, calling the seizure "a criminal and illegal act." He described it as a "military assault, kidnapping and robbery, like Caribbean pirates, against a private commercial vessel." He said the ship was intercepted "far north of Trinidad and Tobago, near the Grenadines, heading into the Atlantic," not in Venezuelan waters.

Maduro claimed the whereabouts of the crew were unknown. "The crew of that ship ... are kidnapped, they are disappeared, nobody knows where they are," he said. He accused Washington of stealing Venezuelan resources, alleging the operation was carried out "to steal Venezuela's oil, asphalt and gas."

He added that he had ordered Venezuelan institutions to pursue legal and diplomatic action and to take measures to "protect all vessels" transporting the country's crude.

Venezuela's Foreign Ministry issued a separate statement on Wednesday calling the seizure "a blatant robbery" and "an act of international piracy." The government argued the action reflects a broader U.S. effort to seize Venezuelan energy assets, citing the loss of control over Citgo as part of what it described as a "deliberate plan of dispossession."

The ministry said it would pursue the case through "all available international mechanisms" and called on supporters to "remain firm in defense of the homeland."

The seizure comes amid intensified U.S. military operations in the Caribbean and eastern Pacific targeting vessels alleged to be involved in drug trafficking. President Donald Trump confirmed the seizure Wednesday and later said the U.S. intends to take control of the oil aboard the tanker, pending legal procedures.

White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt said Thursday the president does not view the action as a step toward broader conflict. "Prolonged war is definitely not something this president is interested in," she said. "He wants peace. He also wants to see the end of illegal drugs being trafficked into the United States."