Up to 800 ‘dark fleet’ vessels operating worldwide, says US Coast Guard
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A US Coast Guard official looking through binoculars at the Marinera (formerly Bella 1), which was seized by the US on Jan 7, after a more than two-week-long pursuit across the Atlantic.
PHOTO: REUTERS
- Up to 800 sanctioned "dark fleet" vessels operate globally, concealing identities using false documents and ownership, according to Rear Admiral David Barata.
- The US Coast Guard has only interdicted a small percentage of these vessels, despite increased naval deployments in the Caribbean.
- The US seized a Russia-linked ship in the North Atlantic, and France interdicted Russia-linked tankers in the Mediterranean in recent months.
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WASHINGTON - Up to 800 “dark fleet” vessels under sanctions are operating worldwide and only a small percentage have been interdicted, a senior US Coast Guard officer said Feb 3.
President Donald Trump in December ordered a “blockade” of sanctioned oil vessels heading to and from Venezuela, as he launched a campaign that has seen American forces take control of seven ships so far.
“We estimate that there’s probably about 600 or 800 sanctioned dark fleet vessels... between Iran and Venezuela, China and Russia,” Rear Admiral David Barata told a congressional hearing.
“It’s a very small percentage” of vessels that have been seized, he said.
The “dark fleet” ships use various means to conceal their locations and identities: “They use false documents, they use false ownership. They claim the numbers of vessels that have already been destroyed,” Rear Adm Barata said.
Washington has deployed a huge naval force in the Caribbean, striking boats it says a stunning operation that captured Venezuela’s leftist leader Nicolas Maduro
Among the vessels seized by the United States in recent weeks was a Russia-linked ship, which US forces captured in the North Atlantic
France’s navy, meanwhile, interdicted a Russia-linked tanker in the Mediterranean
