The American government blacklisted six oil tankers involved in the shipment of Venezuelan oil to Cuba, the latest in a series of sanctions aimed at pressuring Havana to abandon its support for socialist Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro.
Six vessels belonging to state-run oil company Petróleos de Venezuela SA, or PDVSA, were targeted, according to a statement from the U.S. Treasury Department.
The Treasury Department also identified a vessel named Esperanza as property of blacklisted Caroil Transport Marine Ltd and said it was previously designated under the name Nedas.
U.S. Secretary of State Mike Pompeo said in a statement on the latest sanctions that Caracas ships oil to Cuba in exchange for security and intelligence assistance from Havana that supports Maduro.
Under the latest sanctions, Americans are prohibited from engaging in transactions that involve the blacklisted vessels.
The following vessels are all PdVSA crude oil/products tankers that have recently delivered Venezuelan petroleum products to Cuba:
- Icaro (IMO 9038842)
- Luisa Caceres de Arismendi (IMO 9117578)
- Manuela Saenz (IMO 9117492)
- Paramaconi (IMO 9543512)
- Terepaima (IMO 9552496)
- Yare (IMO 9543500)
