Russia formally asks U.S. to stop pursuing oil tanker Bella 1, NYT reports
The Russian government sent an official diplomatic note asking the United States to stop pursuing the oil tanker Bella 1, which was bound for Venezuela and is now fleeing the U.S. Coast Guard in the Atlantic Ocean. Moscow said the vessel is now sailing under the Russian flag.
Censor.NET reports this, citing The New York Times and two sources.
Details
According to the sources, the request was delivered to the U.S. State Department late in the evening on New Year’s Eve. They discussed the diplomatic message on condition of anonymity.
The request concerns the tanker Bella 1, which the United States has been pursuing for nearly two weeks. The vessel was traveling from Iran to Venezuela with oil when the U.S. Coast Guard tried to intercept it in the Caribbean Sea — Washington said the ship lacked a valid national flag, which allowed it to seize the vessel.
However, the crew refused to comply and headed back into the Atlantic Ocean.
- Since then, the vessel has sought Russia’s protection: the crew painted a Russian flag on the ship’s side and told the Coast Guard by radio that the vessel was now sailing under the Russian flag. Recently, Bella 1 appeared in Russia’s official ship registry under a new name, Marinera, with its home port listed as Sochi on the Black Sea.
Censor.NET reported this earlier.
U.S. reaction
Washington considers the rushed Russian registration of the vessel illegal and continues to insist on seizing the tanker, but Moscow’s diplomatic intervention could complicate an attempt to take the ship.
The White House declined to comment officially. But a U.S. official, speaking anonymously about the ongoing law enforcement case, said the Trump administration continues to view the tanker as "stateless" because it was sailing under a false flag when the Coast Guard first approached it.
The U.S. official added that the fugitive vessel remains subject to sanctions related to Iranian oil shipments to Venezuela.
