Two Chinese-flagged very large crude carriers (VLCCs) are heading for Venezuelan waters despite a US government blockade of tankers carrying the country’s oil. The move raises the risk of a serious escalation in Washington-Beijing relations over Venezuelan crude exports.
According to shipping data from Lloyd’s List, the Thousand Sunny is expected to arrive at Venezuela’s Jose terminal in mid-January after passing empty from the Cape of Good Hope in the South Atlantic. The ship, which is not under US sanctions, has previously transported heavy crude Merey from Venezuela to China.
A second Chinese-flagged VLCC, the Xing Ye, also not subject to sanctions, is currently off French Guiana awaiting loading at the same terminal. Neither the State Department nor China’s foreign ministry have commented on the ships’ movements.
Trump’s Pressure on the Maduro Regime
The voyages come as US President Donald Trump is ramping up pressure on Venezuelan President Nicolás Maduro. In mid-December, Trump ordered a “complete and total blockade” of sanctioned tankers entering or leaving the country. US forces have already seized at least two tankers carrying Venezuelan crude in international waters this month, while a third has managed to evade boarding.
The Pentagon described the measures as a “quarantine”, aimed at limiting the revenues of the Maduro government, which Washington accuses of links to drug trafficking and terrorism.
CIA Operation in Venezuela
In parallel, the Central Intelligence Agency (CIA) carried out a drone strike earlier this month on an isolated coastal port in Venezuela. This is the first officially recognized US operation on the territory of the country, according to sources who informed CNN. The target was allegedly used for storing and loading drugs onto boats, possibly by the Venezuelan gang Tren de Aragua. The site was empty at the time of the strike and no casualties were reported.
The operation followed a series of US attacks on suspected drug trafficking vessels in international waters. Trump first mentioned the operation in a radio interview Friday with WABC’s John Catsimatidis, saying that U.S. forces “neutralized” a “large facility where the ships were leaving.” On Monday, Trump provided more details to reporters, saying, “There was a big explosion in the dock area where they were loading the boats with drugs… That’s no longer there.” The White House and the Pentagon have declined to provide further details about the operation or how it was carried out, and Venezuelan authorities have not yet responded publicly to the reports.
