Russia’s Foreign Ministry on Thursday strongly condemned the U.S. military seizure of a Russian-flagged oil tanker in the North Atlantic, warning the action would escalate military and political tensions in the Euro-Atlantic region. The seizure Wednesday of the vessel Bella 1 — which U.S. European Command said was taken for “violations of U.S. sanctions” — drew furious rhetoric from Moscow and sharp criticism from Russian military commentators who accused the Kremlin of failing to respond quickly enough. Russian President Vladimir Putin had not publicly commented on the seizure as of Thursday.
The incident represents the most direct military confrontation between U.S. and Russian interests since President Donald Trump returned to office, arriving as his administration pursues a diplomatic opening with Moscow over Russia’s nearly four-year war in Ukraine — an opening that analysts say could now face new friction.
The seizure
The Bella 1 had been tracked by the U.S. after it attempted to evade a blockade on sanctioned oil vessels around Venezuela. After the pursuit began last month, the vessel was renamed Marinera and reflagged to Russia, receiving a temporary Russian flag permit in December, according to the Associated Press. U.S. European Command announced the seizure Wednesday, citing sanctions violations.
Trump’s administration has enforced an oil embargo on Venezuela. The Energy Department has stated that only oil transported through approved channels consistent with U.S. law and national security interests will be permitted.
Moscow’s response
The Russian Foreign Ministry said the seizure “can only lead to a further escalation of military and political tensions in the Euro-Atlantic region, as well as a visible lowering of the ‘threshold for the use of force’ against peaceful shipping.” It called the action a “gross violation” of international maritime law and said U.S. threats to prosecute the crew “under absurd pretexts” were “categorically unacceptable.”
The ministry dismissed U.S. sanctions as “illegitimate” and said they could not serve as legal justification for seizing vessels on the high seas.
“Washington’s willingness to generate acute international crisis situations, including in relation to already extremely strained Russian-American relations, which are burdened by disagreements from past years, is a cause for regret and concern,” the ministry said.
The White House declined to comment on the Foreign Ministry’s statement.
Putin had also not publicly commented on the earlier U.S. capture of Venezuelan President Nicolás Maduro, though Russian diplomats denounced that action as a blatant act of aggression.
Kremlin under pressure at home
The seizure drew angry commentary from Russian military bloggers, some of whom accused the Kremlin of failing to mount a stronger response. Some proposed deploying military contractors aboard shadow fleet vessels to prevent future seizures.
Alexander Kots, a military correspondent for the Komsomolskaya Pravda tabloid, warned that the Kremlin’s passivity could invite further actions. “Facing a bully who feels all-powerful, we must slap him across the face,” Kots wrote.
Ukraine’s Western allies have long promised to tighten sanctions on the shadow fleet of tankers Russia has used to carry its oil to global customers.
An analyst’s assessment
Daniel Fried, who served as assistant secretary of state for European and Eurasian affairs under Presidents George W. Bush and Barack Obama and is now with the Atlantic Council in Washington, said Russia has limited options for meaningful retaliation.
“The Russians tend to scream and yell when they’ve been embarrassed, and they’ve been embarrassed in this case because Russian power is not what Vladimir Putin makes it out to be,” Fried said. “They couldn’t do anything about this ship.”
Fried said Russia’s complaints about international law carried limited credibility given its invasion of Ukraine, and that the tanker’s claim to Russian registry was tenuous given the temporary nature of its flag permit.
“If you talk about this legally, it’s a complicated issue. If you talk about this strategically, the Russians are badly overextended and vulnerable,” Fried said. “They are hanging on to a war in Ukraine that they are not winning … their economy is hurting.”
Fried said Putin may nonetheless hesitate to antagonize Trump directly, noting that flattery has served Moscow better than confrontation with the new administration.
Sanctions legislation
Senator Lindsey Graham, Republican of South Carolina, said Wednesday that Trump has “greenlit” a Russia sanctions bill intended to economically pressure Moscow that has been in development for months.