All You Need To Know About Marinera, Oil Tanker Seized By US

The United States has seized a Russian-flagged oil tanker, the Marinera, formerly known as Bella 1 and linked to Venezuela, in the North Atlantic, officials confirmed on Wednesday. This is believed to be the first time in recent years that the US has captured a Russian vessel.

The tanker was intercepted by the US Coast Guard while sailing north between Iceland and Scotland, with the UK providing support through RAF surveillance aircraft and the Royal Navy support ship RFA Tideforce.

What is Marinera?

The Marinera is a 2002-built oil and chemical tanker that originally sailed under the Panama flag. Over the years, the vessel has changed names and flags multiple times, including Yannis (2022), Xiao Zhu Shan (2021), Seaways Mulan (2020), Overseas Mulan (2017), and Mtov (2012), according to The Independent.

Marinera Sanctions

The vessel has been linked to Venezuelan oil shipments and has grabbed attention not for the cargo it was carrying, but for how it tried to escape US authorities. In an attempt to avoid capture, the crew changed the ship's name to Marinera, painted a Russian flag on its side, and even updated its official registration to Russia. At the time of its seizure, the tanker was empty.

The tanker was placed on the US sanctions list in 2024 by the Treasury Department's Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC). Washington accused the vessel of being involved in the transport of black‑market Iranian oil for companies tied to the Lebanese militant group Hezbollah.

"Bella 1 had refused previous attempted boarding operations and sailed through international waters to evade confiscation," according to the US officials.

According to Kpler, a company that tracks oil shipments, the ship transported more than six million barrels of Iranian oil last year. Much of this oil was transferred to other ships at sea to hide its final destination.

Marinera Routes

The Marinera escaped from the Caribbean Sea after the US tried to capture it and registered it as a Russian vessel to avoid being seized. The vessel, measuring 333 meters long and 60 meters wide, was rumoured to be sailing past Scandinavia to northern Russia, where it was to dock in Murmansk.

How Did The UK Help The US Seize Marinera?

The US tried to board the Marinera in December after getting a seizure warrant due to its role in the Iranian oil trade, but the ship initially evaded capture and disappeared from tracking systems.

It reappeared in the North Atlantic near UK waters. The US dispatched military planes to UK bases and carried out the seizure.

Russia's transport ministry said it gave the Marinera a temporary permit to sail under the Russian flag on Christmas Eve.

"This ship, with a nefarious history, is part of a Russian-Iranian axis of sanctions evasion which is fuelling terrorism, conflict and misery from the Middle East to Ukraine," said British Defence Secretary John Healey.

Shortly after, the US also captured another sanctioned vessel, M/T Sophia, and is escorting it to the United States.