Venezuela’s foreign affairs minister denounced the seizure, calling it a “blatant theft” and “an act of international piracy.”

The vessel, known as "The Skipper," was seized by the U.S. Coast Guard and other U.S. agencies on Wednesday. It was sanctioned by the U.S. in 2022. According to a 2022 Treasury Department notice, the tanker was one of several vessels used for illicit oil shipments by a Gulf-based businessman named Viktor Artemov.

Daily rates for chartering vessels to transport crude oil, LNG, iron ore, and wheat have surged dramatically in 2025 due to route disruptions, sanctions, and tight supply, with oil tanker rates skyrocketing by 467%.