U.S. Navy Is Chasing Several Oil Tankers in the Atlantic

New York Times - WorldCenter-LeftEN 3 min read 100% complete by Christiaan Triebert, Riley Mellen and Eric SchmittJanuary 8, 2026 at 11:59 PM

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The U.S. Navy is pursuing several sanctioned oil tankers in the Atlantic Ocean after they departed Venezuelan waters en masse earlier this week. The tankers, some laden with oil and others switching to Russian flags, are attempting to evade a U.S. naval blockade initiated in mid-December. U.S. forces have already boarded or seized four vessels, including two on Wednesday, one of which was seized between Iceland and Britain. Satellite imagery and a U.S. military official indicate that at least four tankers are heading east towards Africa and Europe. The U.S. is attempting to intercept these ships to prevent them from trading Venezuelan oil in defiance of sanctions.

Key Entities & Roles

Key Player Opposition Context

TankerTrackers.com 30% University College London 30% Ollie Ballinger ×240% Russia ×250% Caribbean ×260% M Sophia ×260% Atlantic Ocean ×470% Venezuela ×380% U.S. Navy ×280% United States ×690%

Keywords

oil tankers 100% u.s. navy 90% sanctioned tankers 80% venezuelan oil 80% naval blockade 70% atlantic ocean 70% oil shipments 60% vessel seizure 50% russian flag 50% evading sanctions 40%

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Neutral

Score: -0.10

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Source

New York Times - World

Political Lean

Center-Left (-0.30)

Far LeftCenterFar Right

Classification Confidence

90%

Geographic Perspective

United States

This article was automatically classified using rule-based analysis. The political bias score ranges from -1 (far left) to +1 (far right).

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oil tankers u.s. navy sanctioned tankers venezuelan oil naval blockade atlantic ocean oil shipments vessel seizure russian flag evading sanctions

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