Trump Admin Seizes Venezuelan Oil Tanker in First Operation of Its Kind Since 2014

In a high-stakes military operation not seen in over a decade, U.S. forces stormed a Venezuelan oil tanker off the country’s coast this week and the Trump administration is making sure the world sees it.

Attorney General Pam Bondi shared heart-pounding video footage Wednesday of FBI, Homeland Security Investigations (HSI), and U.S. Coast Guard agents rappelling from helicopters and seizing control of the vessel, which had been transporting sanctioned oil tied to Iran and foreign terrorist organizations.

The rare mission marks the first public U.S. seizure of a foreign oil tanker since 2014 and it sent a message loud and clear: the Trump administration is serious about enforcing sanctions, dismantling illicit networks, and putting America first.

“For multiple years, the oil tanker has been sanctioned by the United States due to its involvement in an illicit oil shipping network supporting foreign terrorist organizations,” Bondi wrote. “This seizure… was conducted safely and securely.”

The tactical footage, showing armed agents dropping onto the deck from a chopper with weapons drawn, shocked viewers and made headlines across the globe. It was a clear show of force and a warning to rogue regimes like Venezuela and Iran.

FBI Director Kash Patel echoed the message “Our efforts to crush FTO’s [foreign terrorist organizations] and cut off their resources will continue day and night.”

Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem added “If you threaten our nation or break the law, there is no place on land or sea where we won’t find you.”

President Trump, speaking from the White House, confirmed it was the largest oil tanker ever seized by the U.S. and hinted that “other things” are already in motion.

“You’ll be seeing that later,” he said. “And you’ll be talking about that later with some other people.”

This latest strike comes as the Trump administration increases pressure on Venezuelan dictator Nicolás Maduro who remains in power despite sanctions, a $50 million bounty on his head, and growing international isolation. Trump’s team has already carried out 22 targeted strikes on narco-traffickers in the region, killing 87, and is reportedly weighing additional land-based operations to further disrupt Maduro’s grip.

This operation matters for three key reasons:

• It hits Venezuela’s regime where it hurts most: its oil exports, which fund everything from oppression at home to shady deals with Iran and China.

• It shatters years of Obama-Biden-era weakness, replacing failed diplomacy with decisive action.

• It reestablishes American dominance in the Western Hemisphere, showing our enemies there are real consequences for defiance.

Not surprisingly, Venezuela responded by calling the operation “an act of international piracy” a laughable accusation from a regime that runs black-market oil networks and partners with terror states.

The last time the U.S. seized a foreign tanker was under President Obama in 2014, when Navy SEALs overtook a Libyan oil vessel hijacked by rebels. That operation involved inflatable boats, ladders, and 30 SEALs from Team 2. But unlike the Obama mission which came at the request of foreign governments Trump’s strike was initiated on American terms, in American interests, with no apologies.

The Navy confirmed that 15% of U.S. naval forces are currently deployed in the Caribbean, underscoring Trump’s strategic focus on South and Central America regions long neglected under Democrat leadership.

This is what America First foreign policy looks like bold, unapologetic, and effective.

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