US Military Boards Another Sanctioned Oil Tanker in Indian Ocean

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The U.S. military has boarded another sanctioned oil tanker in the Indian Ocean, this time the Veronica III, after tracking the vessel from the Caribbean Sea. The move is part of the Trump administration's efforts to target Venezuela's illicit oil trade, which has relied on a shadow fleet of falsely flagged tankers to smuggle crude into global supply chains.

Why it matters

The U.S. has imposed sanctions on Venezuela's oil industry for several years, and the boarding of these tankers is a key part of the Trump administration's strategy to pressure the Maduro regime and cut off its access to oil revenue. These interdiction efforts aim to disrupt Venezuela's ability to evade sanctions and export its oil.

The details

According to the Pentagon, the Veronica III, a Panamanian-flagged vessel under U.S. sanctions related to Iran, tried to "defy President Trump's quarantine" and "slip away" from the Caribbean. U.S. forces tracked the tanker to the Indian Ocean and then boarded it, conducting "a right-of-visit, maritime interdiction and boarding." This comes after the U.S. military boarded another sanctioned tanker, the Aquila II, in the Indian Ocean last week.

• The U.S. military boarded the Veronica III overnight on February 15, 2026.
• Last week, the U.S. military boarded the Aquila II tanker in the Indian Ocean.

What’s next

The Pentagon did not specify whether the Veronica III was formally seized and placed under U.S. control, and said it had no additional information beyond the initial statement about the boarding operation.