Trump says U.S. seizes oil tanker off coast of Venezuela

WASHINGTON, Dec. 10 (Xinhua) -- The U.S. military has intercepted and taken control of an oil tanker off the coast of Venezuela, U.S. President Donald Trump said on Wednesday.

"As you probably know, we've just seized a tanker on the coast of Venezuela, a large tanker, very large. Largest one ever seized, actually," Trump said at a White House event.

U.S. forces carried out a "judicial enforcement action on a stateless vessel" that was last docked in Venezuela, according to a Bloomberg report, citing a senior U.S. official.

International oil prices moved higher on news of the seizure, with Brent crude climbing as much as 0.8 percent in London trading, said the report.

Trump has recently reiterated that the U.S. military is to start strikes on land targeting drug traffickers in the Caribbean "very soon," escalating tension between the United States and Venezuela.

The Pentagon has carried out at least 22 known strikes on alleged drug vessels in the Caribbean and eastern Pacific Ocean since September, killing at least 87 people aboard.

Washington has deployed around a dozen warships, including the USS Gerald R. Ford, a major aircraft carrier, and about 15,000 troops to the Caribbean Sea, which shares a significant amount of coastline with Venezuela. The region has not seen such a massive U.S. military presence for at least three decades.

Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro has condemned Washington's actions as attempts to overthrow his government and expand the U.S. military influence in Latin America.