The US Coast Guard tracks the Marinera, 7 January 2026. Photo: US European Command
US military personnel boarded a Russian-flagged oil tanker in international waters in the North Atlantic off the coast of Iceland on Wednesday having pursued it across the ocean for the past two weeks, NBC News has reported, citing an anonymous US official.
Reuters earlier reported that an operation to board the Marinera was being conducted by the US Coast Guard and US Armed Forces, which suspect the vessel of being part of Russia’s “shadow fleet” used to export crude oil in violation of international sanctions.
The US Coast Guard has been attempting to seize the Marinera, which was previously named Bella 1 and sailed under the Panamanian flag, for several weeks. The vessel reportedly attempted to dock in a Venezuelan port in December as it tried to evade US sanctions, according to the Wall Street Journal (WSJ).
Russian military vessels, including a submarine, were in the immediate vicinity of the tanker at the time of the operation, according to Reuters.
On Monday, the Russian Foreign Ministry expressed surprise that the Russian vessel was being subjected to a level of “attention by the US and NATO military that is clearly disproportionate to its peaceful status”, and said that it was monitoring the situation with concern, Russian state news agency TASS reported.
The tanker’s crew managed to resist an attempt by US military personnel to board the vessel in December, the WSJ said, adding that within days, the vessel had changed its name and the crew had painted the Russian flag on its hull. The ship was also re-registered in the Russian Maritime Register of Shipping.
