White House Orders Military to Focus on ‘Quarantine’ of Venezuelan Oil
APEvana, an oil tanker, is docked at El Palito port in Puerto Cabello, Venezuela (Dec. 21, 2025 photo).
Shift in Strategy: Enforcing a Quarantine
WASHINGTON: The White House has directed U.S. military forces to concentrate predominantly on enforcing a quarantine of Venezuelan oil for the next two months. A U.S. official informed Reuters that this move underscores Washington’s current preference for economic pressure over military action to influence Caracas.
– “While military options are still on the table, our priority is to employ economic pressure by reinforcing sanctions to achieve our objectives,” the official stated on Wednesday, speaking on the condition of anonymity.
– Despite President Donald Trump’s public ambiguity regarding his intentions in Venezuela, he has reportedly urged Venezuelan President Nicolás Maduro to consider fleeing the country. Trump indicated on Monday that it would be wise for Maduro to relinquish power.
– “The measures taken to date have exerted significant pressure on Maduro, and there is a strong belief that by late January, Venezuela will confront an economic crisis unless it complies with substantial concessions to the U.S.,” the official added.
U.S. Seeks to Seize Additional Vessels
President Trump has accused Venezuela of overwhelming the U.S. with illegal drugs. His administration has been actively targeting vessels originating from South America that allegedly transport drugs, leading to accusations of extrajudicial actions against these ships.
– So far this month, the U.S. Coast Guard has intercepted two tankers in the Caribbean, both laden with Venezuelan crude.
– The recent comments from the White House follow reports that the Coast Guard is preparing to mobilize additional forces for a third interception attempt against a previously sanctioned vessel, the Bella-1, initially targeted on Sunday.
Venezuela’s U.N. Ambassador, Samuel Moncada, criticized the narrative: “The threat is not Venezuela. The threat is the U.S. government.”
Significant Military Presence in the Caribbean
The White House’s official statement did not specify the implications of focusing almost exclusively on the interdiction of Venezuelan oil. The U.S. military maintains a substantial global footprint, with the Caribbean presently hosting over 15,000 troops, including:
– An aircraft carrier
– Eleven additional warships
– More than a dozen F-35 aircraft
While many of these assets can aid in enforcing sanctions, others, such as fighter jets, may not align with that specific mission.
On Tuesday, the U.S. communicated to the United Nations its intent to impose and enforce sanctions to the maximum extent to cut off resources to Maduro. Earlier this month, Trump initiated a “blockade” of all sanctioned oil tankers entering or exiting Venezuela. However, the administration’s choice of the term quarantine harkens back to the language used during the 1962 Cuban missile crisis, when President John F. Kennedy sought to avoid direct military escalation.
Robert McNamara, Kennedy’s defense secretary, noted in 2002, “We called it a quarantine because blockade is a term of war.”
U.N. experts condemned the blockade, deeming such force as illegal armed aggression.
The ongoing strategy to enforce a quarantine of Venezuelan oil signals a critical shift in U.S. policy towards both economic sanctions and military readiness, aiming to navigate a complex geopolitical landscape.