US seizure of oil tanker off Venezuela about ‘regime change’: senator
President Donald Trump has said the US has seized an oil tanker off the coast of Venezuela as tensions mount with the government of President Nicolás Maduro.
Using US forces to take control of a merchant ship is incredibly unusual and marks the Trump administration's latest push to increase pressure on Maduro, who has been charged with narcoterrorism in the US.
The US has built up the largest military presence in the region in decades and launched a series of deadly strikes on alleged drug-smuggling boats in the Caribbean Sea and eastern Pacific Ocean. The campaign is facing growing scrutiny from Congress.
The US is ramping up military pressure on the South American country. (US Department of Defence)
"We've just seized a tanker on the coast of Venezuela, a large ta...
