Did the U.S. Military Seize an Iranian Oil Tanker After a Chase in the Indian Ocean?

Claims circulated on social media that the U.S. military seized the Iranian oil tanker Veronica III in the Indian Ocean following a lengthy pursuit that allegedly began in the Caribbean on Feb. 15.

The posts were accompanied by video footage that users said showed the interception.

Pentagon Footage Shows Interdiction, Not Seizure

A review of the footage indicates it was published by the U.S. Department of Defense on Feb. 15. In a statement, the Pentagon said U.S. forces conducted a maritime visit, board, search and seizure (VBSS) operation on the Veronica III without incident within the U.S. Indo-Pacific Command area of responsibility.

The statement said the vessel “attempted to challenge the quarantine imposed by President Donald Trump in hopes of slipping away,” adding: “We tracked it from the Caribbean to the Indian Ocean, closed the distance and stopped it.”

However, the official statement used terms such as “interdiction” and “visit, board and search.” It did not state that the vessel was permanently confiscated or fully seized. Nor did it describe the operation as a “lengthy chase,” as claimed in social media posts, instead noting that the ship was tracked before the interdiction.

Vessel Continues Sailing in the Indian Ocean

Maritime tracking data from MarineTraffic show that the crude oil tanker Veronica III (IMO: 9326055) continues to sail in the southern Indian Ocean, heading toward Malaysia.

According to the latest Automatic Identification System (AIS) update, the tanker is located at coordinates 11.535°S, 94.771°E, traveling at approximately 6 knots on a course of 60 degrees. Its reported draft of 21.6 meters indicates it is laden with crude oil.

Is Veronica III an Iranian Oil Tanker?

Social media posts described the vessel as an “Iranian oil tanker.” However, ship registry data show that Veronica III sails under the Panamanian flag and is not registered to an Iranian state-owned company nor directly owned by the Iranian government.

MarineTraffic lists the vessel as a very large crude carrier (VLCC) built in 2006. It has a dead weight tonnage of approximately 298,522 tons, an overall length of 330 meters and a beam of 60.04 meters.

The tanker has been designated under U.S. sanctions for alleged involvement in networks transporting sanctioned oil, but not because it is officially Iranian.

On Dec. 3, 2024, the U.S. Treasury Department sanctioned Shanghai Future Ship Management Co. Ltd., based in Shanghai, under Executive Order 13902 related to Iran’s oil sector. In a statement titled “Treasury Intensifies Pressure on Iran’s Shadow Fleet,” the department said the company managed and operated several tankers allegedly used to transport sanctioned Iranian oil, including Veronica III and another vessel, Meru.

Iran’s Fars News Agency republished the Pentagon’s video and denied that the vessel was linked to Iran. An informed source told the agency that Veronica III is not part of Iran’s oil export fleet and that neither the cargo nor the tanker belongs to Iran.

Possible Links to Venezuelan Oil Shipments

Washington did not explicitly state that the latest interdiction was related to Iran. Media reports have suggested the operation comes amid broader U.S. efforts to curb what it describes as a “shadow fleet” transporting illicit oil linked to Venezuela.

Venezuela has faced U.S. oil sanctions for several years and has relied on tankers sailing under various flags to move crude into global supply chains.

In December, President Donald Trump ordered what officials described as a “quarantine” on sanctioned oil tankers to increase pressure on Venezuelan President Nicolás Maduro before his arrest in January during a U.S. military operation.

According to an analysis published by TankerTrackers, a site that monitors tanker movements using satellite data, Veronica III departed the Venezuelan coast on Jan. 3, 2026 — the same day Maduro was arrested — carrying nearly 2 million barrels of crude oil and fuel oil. The site said the vessel has been involved since 2023 in transporting oil linked to Venezuela, Russia and Iran.

Escalating U.S. Sanctions Enforcement

The incident comes amid stepped-up U.S. enforcement of sanctions targeting Venezuelan oil exports and maritime networks accused of circumventing restrictions on Caracas’ energy sector.

In a Dec. 31, 2025 statement, the Treasury Department’s Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC) announced new sanctions targeting companies operating in Venezuela’s oil sector and tankers linked to it. The department said the measures were part of continued pressure on what Washington called the “illegitimate regime of Nicolás Maduro,” and described the vessels as part of a “shadow fleet” helping evade sanctions.

In early February, U.S. forces also boarded another sanctioned tanker in the Indian Ocean after tracking it from the Caribbean, in what officials described as part of an “oil quarantine” aimed at pressuring Venezuela, according to U.S. Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth.

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