If we wanted to make Russian President Vladimir Putin and his minions extremely angry, we have certainly accomplished that task. When I learned that the U.S. had seized an oil tanker that was displaying a Russian flag and that was being protected by Russian warships, I was absolutely stunned. I have been relentlessly warning that being extremely aggressive with the Russians will backfire severely. If we truly want peace with the Russians, diplomacy is the only solution. Punching the Russians in the face won’t work, and if we continue to go down this path it could easily lead to the unthinkable.
For those that have not heard yet, the U.S. military just seized two more oil tankers. One of them was a Russian-flagged vessel…
The United States has seized a Russian-flagged oil tanker in the North Atlantic following a dramatic weekslong chase on the high seas.
The operation to seize the sanctioned vessel, which changed its name from the Bella 1 to the Marinera after fleeing the American blockade of Venezuela last month, was carried out early Wednesday. The U.S. also announced the seizure of another sanctioned tanker, the M/T Sophia, which it said was “conducting illicit activities in the Caribbean Sea.”
The tanker that was formerly known as the Bella 1 had gotten permission from the Russians to register as a Russian vessel.
And the Russians had just dispatched Russian warships to escort it…
Russia has sent a submarine and other naval assets to escort an empty, rusting oil tanker that has become a new flashpoint in U.S.-Russia relations, according to a U.S. official.
The tanker, formerly known as the Bella 1, has been trying to evade the U.S. blockade of sanctioned oil tankers near Venezuela for more than two weeks. The vessel failed to dock in Venezuela and load with oil. Despite being empty, the U.S. Coast Guard has pursued the ship into the Atlantic in a bid to crack down on a fleet of tankers that ferry illicit oil around the world, including black-market oil sold by Russia.
Grabbing an oil tanker that was being protected by Russian warships was an insane thing to do.
And we did it even though the Russians specifically asked us to stop pursuing the tanker…
Russia has asked the U.S. to stop pursuing the vessel, according to three other U.S. officials. On Tuesday, the Russian Foreign Ministry said it was monitoring “with concern” the situation surrounding the tanker, according to state news agency RIA.
Needless to say, the Russians are furious.
Russia’s Foreign Ministry immediately released a statement that strongly denounced what the U.S. had just done…
In a statement, Russia’s Foreign Ministry said the ship is sailing in international waters under the Russian flag and is operating “in full compliance with international maritime law.” Moscow added that it expects Western nations to uphold that principle in practice.
This is a major turning point in our relations with Russia.
One member of Russia’s parliament is accusing the U.S. of “outright piracy”…
In response to the interceptions, Andrei Klishas, a member of the upper house of Russia’s parliament said the US actions were ‘outright piracy.’
Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth put the world on notice by saying that the blockade of Venezuelan oil is in full effect, and said no ship is safe anywhere in the world.
The Russian Transport Ministry then responded by saying: ‘no state has the right to use force against vessels properly registered in other countries’ jurisdictions.’ It added that US forces boarded the Marinera at 3pm Moscow time, where communications were shortly lost with the vessel after.
And one of the most prominent voices inside Russia, Alexander Dugin, is warning that it is now time for “full fledged war with the West”…
Dugin is extremely influential.
I would not take his words lightly.
Even before this incident, there was zero chance that a peace deal with Russia was going to happen.
But now we are looking at a scenario in which direct conflict between the United States and Russia becomes quite probable.
We should be thankful that the Russian warships that were accompanying the seized oil tanker didn’t intervene.
We might not be so fortunate next time.
The fact that we are seizing oil tankers has also greatly angered the Chinese…
China is livid, and they’re not hiding it.
After Trump announced the U.S. will refine and sell up to 50 million barrels of Venezuelan oil previously frozen under sanctions, Beijing fired back, calling the move a blatant power grab and a direct hit on their interests.
Why? Because that oil wasn’t just sitting there, China had already paid for a big chunk of it, through loan-for-oil deals and state-backed agreements with Maduro’s regime.
China has been buying more oil from Venezuela than the rest of the world combined.
And the Chinese have lent tens of billions of dollars to the Venezuelans.
Is China just going to sit there and watch the U.S. take control of Venezuela and grab all the oil?
Apparently the U.S. is ordering Venezuela to cut off all ties with both Russia and China…
The US authorities demand that Venezuela should sever economic ties with Iran, China, Cuba and Russia as a condition for increasing oil production, ABC News television channel reported.
According to the US-based television broadcaster, Washington put forward several demands to the acting President of Venezuela, Delcy Rodriguez.
Firstly, the Bolivarian Republic will have to “expel China, Russia, Iran, Cuba and sever economic ties” with these countries.
Secondly, Caracas is required to agree to “exclusive cooperation with the United States in the field of oil production,” ABC News reported.
The Chinese have invested an enormous amount of money in the Venezuelan oil industry.
Today, Venezuela possesses the largest proven oil reserves in the entire world, and China needs that oil.
Most people don’t realize this, but China imports about 70 percent of the oil that it uses.
So losing all access to Venezuelan oil would be a tremendous blow.
How far will the U.S. be able to push China before the Chinese decide that enough is enough?
And how far with the U.S. be able to push Russia before the Russians decide that enough is enough?
Many Americans are cheering the fact that we are starting to aggressively push other countries around, but it is only a matter of time before they start pushing back.
Michael’s new book entitled “10 Prophetic Events That Are Coming Next” is available in paperback and for the Kindle on Amazon.com, and you can subscribe to his Substack newsletter at michaeltsnyder.substack.com.
About the Author: Michael Snyder’s new book entitled “10 Prophetic Events That Are Coming Next” is available in paperback and for the Kindle on Amazon.com. He has also written nine other books that are available on Amazon.com including “Chaos”, “End Times”, “7 Year Apocalypse”, “Lost Prophecies Of The Future Of America”, “The Beginning Of The End”, and “Living A Life That Really Matters”. When you purchase any of Michael’s books you help to support the work that he is doing. You can also get his articles by email as soon as he publishes them by subscribing to his Substack newsletter. Michael has published thousands of articles on The Economic Collapse Blog, End Of The American Dream and The Most Important News, and he always freely and happily allows others to republish those articles on their own websites. These are such troubled times, and people need hope. John 3:16 tells us about the hope that God has given us through Jesus Christ: “For God so loved the world, that he gave his only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in him should not perish, but have everlasting life.” If you have not already done so, we strongly urge you to invite Jesus Christ to be your Lord and Savior today.