Venezuela honouring obligations to US despite tanker seizures

MEXICO CITY: Venezuela continues to ship oil to the United States, despite the seizure of tankers carrying Venezuelan crude by the US military, Sputnik/RIA Novosti reported, quoting Vice President Delcy Rodriguez on Monday.

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Venezuela says a Chevron vessel legally departed with oil for the US, stressing compliance with national and international regulations.
Tensions surged after the US designated Venezuela a "foreign terrorist organisation" and blocked all sanctioned oil tankers.
Caracas accuses Washington of provocation, citing military actions in the Caribbean and comments that Maduros leadership is nearing its end.

US President Donald Trump ordered a blockade of sanctioned oil tankers sailing to and from Venezuela in December. The US seized the Skipper tanker on December 10 and the Centuries supertanker on Saturday.

"A vessel of US company Chevron has departed from our country with Venezuelan oil bound for the US, in strict compliance with regulations and in fulfillment of the obligations undertaken by our oil industry," Rodriguez said on Telegram, attaching a video of the vessel.

Caracas is committed to adhering to national and international law, the vice president added.

The statement comes amid a sharp escalation of tensions surrounding Venezuelan oil exports. On Tuesday, US President Donald Trump declared the Venezuelan government a "foreign terrorist organisation" and announced a complete blockade of all sanctioned oil tankers bound to and from Venezuela. He added that the US will not allow "a Hostile Regime to take our Oil, Land, or any other Assets, all of which must be returned to the United States."

The US justifies its military presence in the Caribbean region by the fight against drug trafficking. In September-November, it repeatedly used its armed forces to destroy boats allegedly carrying drugs off the coast of Venezuela.

In November, Trump expressed the opinion that President Nicolas Maduro's days as Venezuela's leader were numbered, while assuring that Washington had no plans to go to war with Caracas. Venezuela viewed these actions as a provocation aimed at destabilising the region and as a violation of international agreements on the demilitarised and nuclear-free status of the Caribbean.

--BERNAMA-SPUTNIK