U.S. Boards Sanctioned, Stateless Tanker in the Indian Ocean
U.S. forces boarded a sanctioned, stateless tanker that was underway in the Indian Ocean after reportedly tracking the vessel for over a month since it departed Venezuela. It is the first seizure by the U.S. in three weeks and the first time American forces have interdicted a vessel in the Indian Ocean as part of Donald Trump’s campaign against Venezuela.
According to the announcement from the Pentagon, “U.S. military forces conducted a right-of-visit, maritime interdiction, and boarding on the Aquila II without incident.” The U.S. asserted that the vessel “was operating in defiance” of the established quarantine of sanctioned vessels in the Caribbean.
The posting on social media said the U.S. had “hunted this vessel from the Caribbean to the Indian Ocean.” They said that U.S. forces “will find you and deliver justice. You will run out of fuel long before you will outrun us.”
When the @DeptofWar says quarantine, we mean it. Nothing will stop DoW from defending our Homeland — even in oceans halfway around the world.
Overnight, U.S. military forces conducted a right-of-visit, maritime interdiction and boarding on the Aquila II without incident in the… pic.twitter.com/kYVAQC5io9
— Department of War ???????? (@DeptofWar) February 9, 2026
The 159,000-dwt tanker, which has been operating since the beginning of 2025 with no known flag registry, was built in 2004 and is reported to be owned and managed from Hong Kong. Its last listed inspection was in October 2024, and the Korean register lists its class certificates as withdrawn as of the start of 2025. Panama had also canceled the vessel’s registration. The U.S. sanctioned the vessel at the beginning of 2025 for its involvement with the Russian oil trade. The UK, EU, and others sanctioned the vessel in the fall of 2025.
Reports are giving the vessel’s last known position as west of Jakarta and south of India and Sri Lanka and possibly heading for the Sunda Strait and toward China. TankerTrackers.com reports the ship was also using a zombie ID of Cape Balder. They tracked the tanker part of the flotilla that fled Venezuela on January 3, about the time Nicolas Maduro was apprehended. TankerTrackers.com reports the vessel is partially laden.
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The statement from the Pentagon showed U.S. troops boarding the tanker from a helicopter. A later picture shows the crew gathered on deck.
A month ago, on January 7, U.S. forces also stopped another tanker in the Atlantic after it attempted to flee from Venezuela. The U.S. Coast Guard followed the Marinera (Bella 1) and finally seized the vessel as it approached Europe and took it into Scotland. The captain and first officer of the tanker have reportedly been brought to the United States for prosecution, while the majority of the crew has been released.
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