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Hello, Curse and Coffee friends,
Today, we explore the USA’s lust for oil.
Hit reply and let us know what you think (we read all of your kind words).
Coffee at the ready…
The Big Sip
The take: The US isn't only chasing Venezuelan oil tankers (it's trying to rewrite what international waters mean).
What happened: Washington filed sealed court warrants to seize dozens more tankers linked to Venezuela's oil trade.
Why it matters: Five ships already grabbed worldwide, no warnings given, and the warrants let the US board vessels anywhere.
What to watch: Pentagon's promise to "hunt down ALL dark fleet vessels at the time and place of our choosing."
Russia deployed a submarine. Washington boarded the tanker anyway.
Sponsor Break
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Here’s Your Brew
US courts issue sealed warrants in civil forfeiture cases. No warning given. Coast Guard or Navy boards wherever they find it.
The cargo's seized, sometimes the ship too.
Russia calls it piracy. UN experts call it armed aggression.
Pentagon spokesperson Sean Parnell said they'll seize vessels "at the time and place of our choosing."
That's global.
China's the top buyer of Venezuelan crude. Seventeen tankers flipped to Russian flags in December.
The US grabbed one near Scotland with UK help anyway.
If seizing ships in international waters to enforce your sanctions is legal, what's the limiting principle?
Iran next?
Russian oil to India?
Every oil importer now prices in boarding risk. Insurance won't touch shadow fleet coverage.
International waters stop being international the moment warrants become weaponised jurisdiction.
Two Sides, One Mug
Left/Pro: Maduro's capture opened the window to strangle his oil revenue permanently.
Right/Con: Seizing foreign-flagged vessels in international waters without UN authorisation violates Article 2(4) of the UN Charter.
Our read: Whether you call it law enforcement or piracy depends on whether you have a Navy big enough to call it.
Receipt of the Day
[Report] US Southern Command operations tracker
Live Wikipedia page documenting five confirmed vessel seizures since December: Skipper (near Grenada, 20 Dec), Bella-1/Marinera (near Iceland, 7 Jan), M Sophia (Caribbean, 7 Jan), Olina (Caribbean, 9 Jan), Centuries (December). Documents seizure locations, flags, and cargo status. More than 30 sanctioned ships remain stuck in Venezuelan waters, unable to move. The blockade's cutting exports while setting precedent for extraterritorial seizures worldwide.
Spit Take
"Dozens" of sealed warrants filed. Nobody knows which ships. — Reuters via Japan Times.
Your Coffee Break Links (and water cooler chatter)
Treasury OFAC sanctions list — Official designations from 2 January naming four tankers as "blocked property." See how sanctions paperwork becomes seizure justification.
CNBC on shadow fleet reflagging — Maritime data showing Russia's absorbing sanctioned tankers at scale. The protection-for-registration trade is explicit.
Just Security legal analysis — International law scholars break down why Maduro capture and tanker seizures violate UN Charter prohibition on force. Written 2 days ago while debate's hot.
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Mugshot Poll 📊
What happens when the US tries to board a Chinese-owned tanker carrying Venezuelan oil?
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