Two Russian sailors released after US seizure of tanker in north Atlantic

Two Russian sailors have been released and are returning home to Russia following the detention of their vessel by US forces, Russian Foreign Ministry spokesperson Maria Zakharova told TASS.

The ship, now known as the Marinera and formerly called Bella 1, was seized by the US military on January 7 in the North Atlantic after a weeks-long pursuit that began near the Caribbean. US officials stated that the tanker had been taken into custody for violating American sanctions.

According to US authorities, the Marinera was linked to a so-called “shadow fleet” of ships used to evade international sanctions related to Venezuelan and Iranian oil shipments. The tanker had been sanctioned by the US Treasury Department’s Office of Foreign Assets Control and was allegedly involved in a prior attempt to avoid a boarding operation.

By Sabina Mammadli