US sells seized sanctioned oil tankers for scrap in India

The US government has sold for scrap two sanctioned oil tankers that were seized in the ​days after Washington's raid on Venezuela, Reuters reports, citing Lloyd’s List.

Dubai-headquartered vessel recycling firm Global Marketing Systems purchased the tankers last month for an undisclosed sum, according to the report.

The sale ​included the Era, previously operating as Marinera and Bella ​1, and the Lileo, previously sailing as Galileo and ⁠Veronica, the report said. The tankers will be demolished ​in scrap yards in India.

“The U.S. government has sold them ​to us and there was a court order authorizing the sales, but there are complexities, not least the fact that we weren’t really ​sure who previously owned them,” GMS CEO Anil Sharma told ​Lloyd’s List.

GMS did not immediately respond to a Reuters request for comment.

US ‌Coast ⁠Guard and military special forces seized the Russian-flagged Era in January in waters south of Iceland, ending a weeks-long pursuit across the Atlantic. The vessel had previously slipped through a US​blockade in ​the Caribbean aimed ⁠at stopping oil exports from Venezuela.

Washington said then that the Era had been used to ​transport sanctioned oil from Venezuela and Iran.

The ​US also ⁠seized the Russian-flagged vessel now known as Lileo in the Caribbean Sea in January. That tanker was subject to US sanctions ⁠against Russia.

The ​US seized as many as 10 ​oil tankers after its military action in Venezuela. Sanctioned vessels frequently change names ​to evade detection.

By Vafa Guliyeva