Brent Rises to $61.46 as U.S Seizes Venezuelan Oil Tankers
Prices of crude oil increased in the global commodity market on Friday due to concerns over supply, driven by reports that the US is preparing to seize additional Venezuelan oil tankers.
Brent crude was trading at $61.46 per barrel, up around 0.2% from the previous close of $61.35. US benchmark West Texas Intermediate (WTI) also increased by about 0.2% to $57.80, compared to $57.67 in the prior session.
US President Donald Trump reiterated that, in addition to operations carried out in the Caribbean to end what he claims is drug trafficking coming from Venezuela, they will “soon begin land-based operations.”
White House spokesperson Karoline Leavitt previously said a tanker seized off the coast of Venezuela had been confiscated on the grounds that it was carrying oil for Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC), which is under US sanctions.
“The president is committed to stopping the illegal flow of drugs into our country. He’s also fully committed to effectuating this administration’s sanction policy. And that’s what you saw, and the world saw take place yesterday,” she said.
Investigators are currently on the vessel, and individuals who were on board at the time it was interdicted “are being interviewed, and any relevant evidence is being seized.”
The vessel is being taken to a US port, and the Trump administration intends to enter into legal proceedings to formally seize the cargo.
US Attorney General Pam Bondi said Wednesday that the FBI, Homeland Security Investigations (HSI) agency, and the US Coast Guard, with support from the Defense Department, executed a seizure warrant for the tanker, which is alleged to have been used to transport sanctioned oil from Venezuela and Iran.
Venezuelan Foreign Minister Yvan Gil said in a statement Wednesday that his country “strongly condemns what constitutes a blatant act of theft and international piracy, publicly announced by the president of the United States.”
He said it was not the first such incident and accused the Trump administration of pursuing a deliberate plan to seize Venezuela’s energy resources, noting that Trump “openly stated during his 2024 campaign that his goal had always been to take Venezuela’s oil without paying anything in return.”
The move is all but certain to further ratchet up tensions with Caracas as Trump continues to demand Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro step down from power, maintaining that all options, including military force, remain on the table amid a massive force buildup in the region.
The US has already carried out 22 known strikes on alleged “narco-terrorist” seaborne vessels, killing 87 people since the attacks began in the Caribbean Sea and Eastern Pacific Ocean in early September.
Meanwhile, optimism surrounding diplomatic efforts aimed at ending the Russia-Ukraine war is limiting the upward movement in prices.
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said they were working with European allies on a peace plan and intended to present the proposal to the US side soon.
Responding to a question on whether Washington would join talks scheduled for this weekend that will bring together European and Ukrainian negotiators, Trump said the issue was still under evaluation.
A potential peace agreement between Russia and Ukraine is expected to increase the global supply of Russian oil, which is subject to Western sanctions. OPEC Oil Production in November Declines in November
