The administration of President Donald Trump made an unexpected decision to hand over the supertanker M/T Sophia, which was detained by the US Coast Guard in early January 2026, to the Venezuelan authorities. This gesture was the first instance of a "shadow fleet" vessel being returned since the beginning of the large-scale naval blockade of Venezuela, known as Operation "Southern Spear." Reuters reports this, writes UNN.
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The supertanker M/T Sophia, flying the Panamanian flag, was intercepted by the US military on January 7 in the Caribbean Sea. At the time, the Pentagon called the vessel a "motor tanker without state affiliation" that was illegally transporting sanctioned oil.
However, on Wednesday, January 28, two anonymous US officials told Reuters that the vessel was being returned to Caracas's control. The reasons for this step are not officially disclosed, and the US Coast Guard is currently refraining from comment.
Special operation "Absolute Resolve"
The decision to return the tanker seems particularly resonant against the backdrop of events on January 3, 2026, when the elite US unit "Delta" conducted a daring night raid in Caracas. As a result of Operation "Absolute Resolve," Venezuelan President Nicolás Maduro and his wife Cilia Flores were captured and taken to New York, where they have already been charged with narco-terrorism.