The aggressor country russia has accused the United States of America of violating international law after the US military seized the Marinera tanker in the Atlantic Ocean.
This is evidenced by the message of the Ministry of Transport of russia, published on Wednesday, January 7.
The russian ministry confirmed that US military personnel had boarded the Marinera tanker. After that, contact with the vessel was lost.
"In accordance with the provisions of the 1982 UN Convention on the Law of the Sea, the regime of freedom of navigation is in force on the high seas and no state has the right to use force against ships," the ministry said.
The russian ministry added that on December 24, 2025, the Marinera tanker received a temporary permit to fly the russian flag.
Marinera (IMO: 9230880) is a tanker of the so-called "shadow fleet", which until recently was called Bella-1 and flew the flag of Guyana. The US accused the vessel of violating sanctions and transporting oil products from Iran to Venezuela.
In December, the US Coast Guard attempted to detain the tanker in the Caribbean Sea, but the vessel abruptly changed course and headed northeast across the Atlantic Ocean. In addition, the crew of the tanker painted the russian flag on board, which coincided with the re-registration of the vessel.
As the Ukrainian News agency earlier reported, earlier today, on January 7, the US Army Command in Europe said that the US Army had seized the Marinera tanker.
A few hours later, it became known that the US military had detained the Sophia tanker in the Caribbean Sea. This is another tanker from the so-called "shadow fleet."
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