Dec. 11, 2025, 1:41 PM ESTBy Doha MadaniThe Trump administration plans to seize the oil aboard a tanker captured near Venezuela this week, the White House said Thursday, calling the ship a “sanctioned shadow” vessel associated with the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps. White House Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt said the oil tanker is tied to black-market oil activity and currently undergoing a forfeiture process which includes interviews with those on board and the seizure of relevant evidence. “The vessel will go to a U.S. port, and the United States does intend to seize the oil,” Leavitt said during her afternoon briefing. “However, there is a legal process for the seizure of that oil, and that legal process will be followed.” President Donald Trump announced to reporters on Wednesday that the tanker had been seized but did not provide details. It was Attorney General Pam Bondi who, hours later, identified the ship as a tanker that had been previously sanctioned “due to its involvement in an illicit oil shipping network supporting foreign terrorist organizations.” When asked about what the U.S. would do with the oil, Trump told reporters Wednesday that he didn’t know.”We keep it, I guess,” Trump said.U.S. seizes oil tanker off Venezuela coast01:46A federal law enforcement official identified the ship as the Skipper to NBC News on Thursday. The Skipper is the same vessel previously identified by the Treasury Department as the Adisa, an oil tanker tied to a sanctions-evading smuggling network that U.S. officials say moved Iranian oil to generate revenue for Hezbollah and Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard. The Adisa was owned through shell companies linked to network facilitator Viktor Artemov and used to transport oil on behalf of the smuggling network, according to a 2022 sanctions note from the Treasury.Venezuelan Foreign Minister Yván Gil Pinto described the seizure as a “blatant theft” in a statement on social media. “The true reasons for the prolonged aggression against Venezuela have been laid bare. It is not migration. It is not drug trafficking. It is not democracy. It is not human rights,” Pinto said. “It has always been about our natural wealth, our oil, our energy, the resources that belong exclusively to the Venezuelan people.” The Skipper’s seizure comes as tensions escalate between Venezuela and the U.S., with the Trump administration targeting alleged drug vessels in the Caribbean.Since September, Trump has defended the strikes on boats as part of what he describes as an “armed conflict” with drug cartels. He’s also increased U.S. military presence in the Caribbean in recent weeks.The USS Gerald R. Ford, which carries squadrons of fighter jets and guided-missile destroyers, was sent to the region last month in what was seen as a pressure tactic against Venezuelan President Nicolás Maduro. Maduro, who is charged with narcoterrorism in U.S. federal court, has accused Trump’s administration of trying to manufacture a war against him. He spoke to farmers in an appearance on Wednesday but did not mention the oil tanker seizure at the time. However, he did appear to make reference to tensions with the U.S. by saying that Venezuela is ready for a fight.”It’s not a time for cowards,” he said. “It’s time for combat.”Doha MadaniDoha Madani is a senior breaking news reporter for NBC News. Pronouns: she/her.