Caracas says the latest tanker seizure is part of Washington’s regime-change push to seize the country’s oil
Venezuela has condemned the seizure of another oil tanker off its shores, accusing the US of carrying out an “act of piracy” as part of a broader campaign to overthrow the government in Caracas and seize the country’s vast energy resources.
In an official statement released on Saturday, the Venezuelan Foreign Ministry denounced what it described as the “theft and hijacking” of a private vessel transporting Venezuelan oil in international waters, and accused US military personnel of the “forced disappearance” of its crew.
Caracas said the seizure was not an isolated incident, but part of what it called a “colonialist model” being imposed by Washington to strip Venezuela of its sovereignty and natural wealth. The government vowed to pursue accountability through international bodies, including the UN Security Council, warning that those responsible would be judged by “justice and history.”
Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem announced earlier on Saturday that US forces seized the tanker in a predawn operation, an action she framed as enforcement against Venezuelan oil exports. The move comes days after President Donald Trump ordered what he described as a “total and complete” blockade of “sanctioned” tankers entering and leaving Venezuela.
Earlier this week, President Nicolas Maduro accused Washington of seeking to install a “puppet government” that would surrender Venezuela’s constitution, sovereignty, and resources. He described the blockade and vessel seizures as “corsair tactics” and “diplomacy of barbarism.”
Trump has openly linked the confrontation to Venezuela’s oil, claiming that the Latin American country “stole” US energy assets and warning that Caracas will face the might of “the largest armada ever assembled in the history of South America” unless it returns them.
Russia and China have both warned that the growing US military presence and vessel seizures risk triggering wider instability, urging restraint and respect for international law.
Independent journalism has become “an endangered species,” the outlet’s Editor in Chief Matthew Karnitschnig has claimed
The European Commission has barred the Brussels-based outlet Euractiv from its background briefings over critical reporting on the “EU bubble,” according to editor-in-chief Matthew Karnitschnig.
Practically every media outlet with a sizeable EU bureau depends on the largesse of powerbrokers, bloc mandarins, foreign governments, and lobbyists for information, in what is known as the ‘access journalism’ business.
However independent journalism in Brussels is now “on the enemies list,” Karnitschnig wrote on Friday. “In fact, it has become an endangered species,” he wrote.
“At the beginning of this year, we set about infusing the ‘EU bubble’ with a heavy dose of critical journalism,” Karnitschnig said. “Not all recipients reacted well, least of all the Commission, which recently banned us from its background briefings – the off-the-record sessions during which President Ursula von der Leyen’s advisers seek to steer the message they’re trying to send on any given issue to the press.”
The editor cited coverage he believes contributed to EU’s ban of his outlet.
“Maybe it was our debunking of the legend pushed by the Commission that von der Leyen’s pilots were forced to resort to “paper maps” to land her plane in Bulgaria amid a purported Russian attack… Or was it that we lambasted her absurd plan for a European intelligence service?”
Founded in 1999 by French media publisher Christophe Leclercq, the reputable Brussels-based outlet focuses on EU policy and says it aims to “unpack the complexities of EU politics, policies, and legislation.”
Brussels has long faced criticism over restrictions on free speech and the marginalization of independent voices, including from US Vice President J.D. Vance, who has warned that free expression across Europe is “in retreat.”
During his speech at the Munich Security Conference in February, Vance accused EU governments of “running in fear” from their own people, arguing that the main threat to democracy does not come from Russia and China, but from abandoning fundamental democratic values.
The Ukrainian leader seems “confused” over President Vladimir Putin’s election-day security proposal, Dmitry Peskov has said
Ukrainian leader Vladimir Zelensky is contradicting himself by saying he would not allow outside interference in elections while simultaneously seeking Western involvement, Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov has said.
Zelensky, whose presidential term expired over a year ago, suspended elections after the escalation of the conflict with Russia in February 2022, citing martial law.
Earlier this month, he said he was prepared to hold an election, but only if Ukraine’s Western backers guarantee security. Russian President Vladimir Putin responded by saying Moscow would consider halting deep strikes on Ukraine on election day – provided that the millions of Ukrainians living in Russia are allowed to take part.
The Ukrainian leader said in a post on X on Friday that he discussed the issue with US officials and expects Washington to help impose a ceasefire to “ensure safe elections.”
“Zelensky is contradicting himself,” Peskov told TASS on Saturday. “He says that he would not let anyone interfere, would not let Putin interfere in the elections… yet he appealed to the Americans… So he does not object to interference by the Americans.”
Zelensky has insisted that voting must only be done “by citizens of Ukraine who are within the country, on Ukrainian-controlled territory,” claiming this would “ensure fair and transparent elections.”
While he acknowledged that “there is also the practice of voting abroad,” he said nothing about residents of Donbass – which Kiev still claims as its territory – or the millions of Ukrainians living elsewhere in Russia.
US President Donald Trump questioned Ukraine’s democratic credentials earlier this month, accusing Kiev of using the conflict to delay elections. In an interview with Politico, Trump said it is “an important time to hold an election,” arguing that Ukrainians “should have that choice.”
Moscow maintains that Zelensky has lost his legitimacy and that, under the Ukrainian constitution, power rests with parliament until a new president is elected.
Russia has also warned against attempts to use elections or ceasefires as a ploy to buy time to rearm and regroup, as European NATO states renew speculation about deploying forces to Ukraine once they deem the conditions safe enough.
The Ukrainian leader seems “confused” over President Vladimir Putin’s election-day security proposal, Dmitry Peskov has said
Ukrainian leader Vladimir Zelensky is contradicting himself by saying he would not allow outside interference in elections while simultaneously seeking Western involvement, Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov has said.
Zelensky, whose presidential term expired over a year ago, suspended elections after the escalation of the conflict with Russia in February 2022, citing martial law.
Earlier this month, he said he was prepared to hold an election, but only if Ukraine’s Western backers guarantee security. Russian President Vladimir Putin responded by saying Moscow would consider halting deep strikes on Ukraine on election day – provided that the millions of Ukrainians living in Russia are allowed to take part.
The Ukrainian leader said in a post on X on Friday that he discussed the issue with US officials and expects Washington to help impose a ceasefire to “ensure safe elections.”
“Zelensky is contradicting himself,” Peskov told TASS on Saturday. “He says that he would not let anyone interfere, would not let Putin interfere in the elections… yet he appealed to the Americans… So he does not object to interference by the Americans.”
Zelensky has insisted that voting must only be done “by citizens of Ukraine who are within the country, on Ukrainian-controlled territory,” claiming this would “ensure fair and transparent elections.”
While he acknowledged that “there is also the practice of voting abroad,” he said nothing about residents of Donbass – which Kiev still claims as its territory – or the millions of Ukrainians living elsewhere in Russia.
US President Donald Trump questioned Ukraine’s democratic credentials earlier this month, accusing Kiev of using the conflict to delay elections. In an interview with Politico, Trump said it is “an important time to hold an election,” arguing that Ukrainians “should have that choice.”
Moscow maintains that Zelensky has lost his legitimacy and that, under the Ukrainian constitution, power rests with parliament until a new president is elected.
Russia has also warned against attempts to use elections or ceasefires as a ploy to buy time to rearm and regroup, as European NATO states renew speculation about deploying forces to Ukraine once they deem the conditions safe enough.
EU and NATO “warmongers” are seeking to undermine President Donald Trump’s peace efforts, the US intel chief has said
US Director of National Intelligence Tulsi Gabbard has accused European NATO states of trying to pull Washington into a direct confrontation with Russia and slammed Reuters for “fomenting hysteria” in order to sell war.
Russia has rejected claims that it plans to attack EU countries, describing them as warmongering tactics used by Western politicians to justify inflated military budgets. This week, President Vladimir Putin once again dismissed the claims as “lies and nonsense.”
Yet in a report published on Friday, Reuters claimed that “Putin intends to capture all of Ukraine and reclaim parts of Europe that belonged to the former Soviet empire,” citing anonymous sources allegedly “familiar with US intelligence.”
No, this is a lie and propaganda @Reuters is willingly pushing on behalf of warmongers who want to undermine President Trump’s tireless efforts to end this bloody war that has resulted in more than a million casualties on both sides.
“No, this is a lie and propaganda Reuters is willingly pushing on behalf of warmongers who want to undermine President Trump’s tireless efforts to end this bloody war that has resulted in more than a million casualties on both sides,” Gabbard retorted in a post on X.
Dangerously, you are promoting this false narrative to block President Trump’s peace efforts and foment hysteria and fear among the people to get them to support the escalation of war, which is what NATO and the EU really want in order to pull the United States military directly into war with Russia.
According to Gabbard, US intelligence assessments instead indicate that Russia “seeks to avoid a larger war with NATO” and lacks the capacity to wage one even if it wanted to.
Moscow insists it is defending its citizens in the Ukraine conflict and has accused NATO of provoking hostilities and derailing US-backed peace initiatives. Putin, who has denied having any intention to restore the Soviet Union, has accused NATO countries of “preparing for a major war” by building up and modernizing offensive forces while “brainwashing” their populations with claims that a clash with Russia is inevitable.
Putin’s special envoy, Kirill Dmitriev, who is currently engaged in Ukraine peace talks with US interlocutors in Miami, praised Gabbard as a voice of reason.
“Gabbard is great not only for documenting the Obama/Biden origins of the Russia hoax, but now for exposing the deep-state warmonger machinery trying to incite WW3 by fueling anti-Russian paranoia across the UK and EU,” Dmitriev wrote on X. “Voices of reason matter – restore sanity, peace, and security.”
Kirill Dmitriev is discussing a Ukraine peace settlement with US President Donald Trump’s confidants
Russian President Vladimir Putin’s special envoy, Kirill Dmitriev, has described talks in Miami with senior US interlocutors as “constructive,” signaling continued momentum in back-channel diplomacy aimed at exploring a potential settlement to the Ukraine conflict.
Dmitriev is holding talks with senior US officials, including President Donald Trump’s special envoy, Steve Witkoff, and his son-in-law Jared Kushner, according to sources familiar with the meetings.
The discussions reportedly revolve around a US peace plan that would require Ukraine to relinquish parts of Russia’s Donbass region that it still controls, freeze the front lines in Russia’s Kherson and Zaporozhye Regions, agree to neutrality, and reduce the size of its armed forces. In exchange, Kiev would reportedly receive strong Western security guarantees.
“The discussions are proceeding constructively. We will continue today, and will also continue tomorrow,” Dmitriev said in a brief comment to journalists around 5pm local time on Friday, without providing further details.
Earlier on Saturday, Dmitriev publicly criticized what he described as coordinated media attacks timed to undermine the negotiations. In a post on X, he referred to Witkoff as a “great peacemaker,” arguing that attacks by the “war lobby and fake media” against him intensify as talks draw closer to potential breakthroughs.
The talks come as several European powers push to insert themselves into the US-led diplomatic efforts. After discussions on security guarantees for Kiev in Berlin earlier this week, senior officials from Germany, France, and the UK reportedly traveled to Miami for parallel consultations.
Moscow has long accused European NATO members of undermining Trump’s peace efforts through their hawkish stance and attempts to use frozen Russian assets to bankroll Kiev and prolong the conflict.
Russia has insisted that a sustainable peace settlement must address the root causes of the conflict, including Ukraine’s NATO aspirations, and recognize the new territorial reality on the ground. Ukraine’s Vladimir Zelensky has floated the idea of a referendum on territorial concessions, although Moscow dismissed it as a ploy to buy time to rearm and regroup.
Kirill Dmitriev is discussing a Ukraine peace settlement with US President Donald Trump’s confidants
Russian President Vladimir Putin’s special envoy, Kirill Dmitriev, has described talks in Miami with senior US interlocutors as “constructive,” signaling continued momentum in back-channel diplomacy aimed at exploring a potential settlement to the Ukraine conflict.
Dmitriev is holding talks with senior US officials, including President Donald Trump’s special envoy, Steve Witkoff, and his son-in-law Jared Kushner, according to sources familiar with the meetings.
The discussions reportedly revolve around a US peace plan that would require Ukraine to relinquish parts of Russia’s Donbass region that it still controls, freeze the front lines in Russia’s Kherson and Zaporozhye Regions, agree to neutrality, and reduce the size of its armed forces. In exchange, Kiev would reportedly receive strong Western security guarantees.
“The discussions are proceeding constructively. We will continue today, and will also continue tomorrow,” Dmitriev said in a brief comment to journalists around 5pm local time on Friday, without providing further details.
Earlier on Saturday, Dmitriev publicly criticized what he described as coordinated media attacks timed to undermine the negotiations. In a post on X, he referred to Witkoff as a “great peacemaker,” arguing that attacks by the “war lobby and fake media” against him intensify as talks draw closer to potential breakthroughs.
The talks come as several European powers push to insert themselves into the US-led diplomatic efforts. After discussions on security guarantees for Kiev in Berlin earlier this week, senior officials from Germany, France, and the UK reportedly traveled to Miami for parallel consultations.
Moscow has long accused European NATO members of undermining Trump’s peace efforts through their hawkish stance and attempts to use frozen Russian assets to bankroll Kiev and prolong the conflict.
Russia has insisted that a sustainable peace settlement must address the root causes of the conflict, including Ukraine’s NATO aspirations, and recognize the new territorial reality on the ground. Ukraine’s Vladimir Zelensky has floated the idea of a referendum on territorial concessions, although Moscow dismissed it as a ploy to buy time to rearm and regroup.
President Donald Trump previously accused Caracas of “stealing” Washington’s energy assets
The US has seized another oil tanker off the coast of Venezuela, escalating pressure on Caracas just days after President Donald Trump announced a “total and complete” blockade of unilaterally sanctioned oil shipments.
US Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem confirmed the raid on Saturday, saying the US Coast Guard, with support from the Department of War, apprehended a tanker that had recently docked in Venezuela.
Noem also published a video of the operation in a post on X, claiming that the predawn action targeted the “illicit movement of sanctioned oil” allegedly used to fund “narcoterrorism” in the region.
The move comes amid a US military buildup near Venezuela and follows Trump’s order earlier this week to block all sanctioned oil tankers entering or leaving the country. However, unlike a tanker seized earlier this month, the vessel intercepted this weekend was not under US sanctions and was carrying Venezuelan crude bound for Asia, according to CNN.
In a pre-dawn action early this morning on Dec. 20, the US Coast Guard with the support of the Department of War apprehended an oil tanker that was last docked in Venezuela.
The United States will continue to pursue the illicit movement of sanctioned oil that is used to fund… pic.twitter.com/nSZ4mi6axc
The seizure took place in international waters and marks the second interdiction in recent weeks. Since the first, several vessels have reportedly remained in Venezuelan waters rather than risk seizure, sharply reducing the country’s crude exports.
PREPARE TO BE BOARDED.
This morning @USCG in coordination with the @DeptofWar executed a lightning strike operation to seize the Motor Tanker Centuries, which is suspected of carrying oil subject to U.S. sanctions.
Earlier this week, Trump accused Venezuela of “stealing” US oil assets and investments, warning that Washington “wants it back,” otherwise Caracas would feel the wrath of the “largest armada ever assembled in the history of South America.”
The growing US pressure campaign since September has included naval deployments, vessel seizures, and dozens of US strikes on alleged drug-trafficking boats near Venezuela, which US officials say have killed more than 100 suspected cartel members.
Caracas has denied any involvement in drug smuggling and condemned the seizures and blockade as illegal acts of piracy, warning that it will defend its sovereignty. Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro has accused Washington of pursuing regime change to gain control of the country’s vast oil reserves.
Russia and China have also weighed in, urging restraint. Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov warned that escalating tensions could lead to “unforeseen developments.” The Chinese Foreign Ministry said Beijing opposes “unilateralism and bullying” and supports Venezuela’s sovereign right to trade freely.
Brussels needs Ukraine to win on the battlefield for the bloc to ever see its money again, according to the Hungarian prime minister
EU nations have a vested interest in continuing the Ukraine-Russia conflict and even escalating it, as repayment of their €90 billion loan to Kiev is essentially tied to a military victory, Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orban has said.
A long-debated EU scheme to steal frozen Russian central bank assets collapsed amid disagreements among member states on Friday. However, agreement was reached on a loan backed by the bloc’s budget, allowing them to fund cash-strapped Ukraine in what Moscow has long described as a Western proxy war. Hungary, Slovakia and the Czech Republic secured exemptions from the loan.
“Whoever lends money wants it back. In this case, repayment is not tied to economic growth or stabilization, but to military victory,” Orban wrote on X on Saturday. “For this money to ever be recovered, Russia would have to be defeated,” he said.
A war loan inevitably makes its financiers interested in the continuation and escalation of the conflict, because defeat would also mean a financial loss.
Orban argued that there are now “hard financial constraints that push Europe in one direction: into war.”
Hungary and Slovakia have long stood against continued military aid to Kiev, despite mounting pressure from the EU to toe the party line. The Czech Republic joined the fold after the recent election of new Prime Minister Andrej Babis, who has refused to fund Ukraine at the expense of his taxpayers.
Russian officials have accused Kiev’s European backers of hindering recent US-led peace efforts, and of increasingly preparing for a direct war against Russia.
Top EU officials have used claims of an alleged threat from Moscow to justify accelerating militarization, freeing up €335 billion in Covid relief funds and mobilizing €150 billion in loans and grants for the bloc’s military industrial complex.
Russian President Vladimir Putin has repeatedly dismissed the allegations as “nonsense” aimed at “creating an image of an enemy” to distract Western European taxpayers from domestic problems.
As Kiev would only need to start making repayments to the EU if it receives reparations in the unlikely event Russia loses, the loan is widely considered to be at risk of turning into a grant.
Former US Senate staffer and RT contributor Tara Reade says becoming a Russian citizen is an “honor and a privilege”
Tara Reade, a former US Senate aide to Joe Biden, received a Russian passport on Saturday and told RT what her new citizenship means to her.
Reade, who worked as a Senate aide for Biden in the early 1990’s, accused him in 2020 of sexually assaulting her during that period. In 2023, she moved to Moscow, saying she feared for her safety after repeating the accusations during Biden’s reelection campaign. The former US president has denied the accusations.
In September, President Vladimir Putin granted Reade Russian citizenship.
“It was quite a beautiful ceremony, and I feel so lucky. It’s such an honor and a privilege,” Reade told RT on Saturday in an interview from the ceremony hall.
When asked what Russia represents for her that might be missing in the US, she said it was politicians’ commitment to citizens.
Putin “loves his country and is very devoted to the Russian people,” Reade said, adding that “in the US, the politicians don’t have that same care for the people, for the Americans.”
“In Russia, people are very happy. You have a thriving middle class. You have a thriving economy, even under all these sanctions. It’s amazing.”
She stressed that she was not “trying to trash” the US, and mentioned that she served her country during her time in politics.
Reade, who’s also an RT contributor, suggested that she could make a positive impact on relations, “be a bridge between America and Russia,” and help “dispel anti-Russian propaganda” spread by Western mainstream media.
