The US President Donald Trump has decided to release two Russians from the crew of the tanker “Marinera” (“Bella 1”), who were detained by the US military.
This was stated by Russian Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Maria Zakharova, quoted by the Russian service of Radio Liberty.
This tanker was detained by the Americans on January 7 in the North Atlantic. It is suspected of violating American sanctions and transporting Iranian and Venezuelan oil.
After the sanctions, the tanker not only changed its name but also re-registered from the Guyanese flag to the Russian one. The US tried to seize it in the Caribbean in December and had an arrest warrant.
The US pursued the tanker for several weeks, after which Russia sent a submarine and several Navy ships to escort it.
The same day, the Americans seized the Sophia in the Caribbean. Reuters sources say the tanker left Venezuelan waters in early January as part of a fleet of ships secretly transporting Venezuelan oil to China. Ukrainian intelligence has reported that the tankers in this fleet were also transporting Russian oil.
For more news and in-depth stories from Ukraine, please follow us on X.