Venezuela, Greenland And Now A Russian-Flagged Tanker Seizure — What Is Trump Up To?

Key Highlights

• A notable and unusual element of that agenda is Trump's renewed interest in Greenland. Earlier this year Trump reignited discussions about whether the US should pursue control, either through purchase or other means, of the Arctic territory - a Danish semi-autonomous region rich in strategic mineral resources and increasingly important for its position in Arctic shipping routes. While US Secretary of State Marco Rubio has stated that purchasing Greenland remains the preferred route - and that military options are a last resort - the very framing of the discussion has alarmed European allies. The proposal shows a hard-nosed view of global power politics, where both energy resources and geographical assets matter more than international cooperation. The Greenland debate, once dismissed as unlikely, now sits alongside more active US foreign policy initiatives in the Caribbean and Atlantic - suggesting Trump's willingness to challenge longstanding diplomatic norms to secure strategic advantages. Russian-flagged Tanker SeizedThe Venezuelan bombardment and the Greenland skirmishes were followed, on January 7, by US forces seizing a Russian-flagged oil tanker, the Marinera (formerly Bella 1), in the North Atlantic.
• This marked a dramatic chapter in what Washington describes as enforcement of sanctions and a blockade of illicit oil shipments tied to Venezuela.
• The operation was not limited to that single vessel.
• US agencies controlled another vessel, the Sophia, near the Caribbean. Both ships had been associated with efforts to move sanctioned crude from Venezuela - and, in at least one case, allegedly to evade US bans on such shipments. The Trump administration has framed these seizures as part of a broader effort to keep sanctioned oil off the global market when it believes the profits could help fuel corruption, narco-terrorism or bolster regimes hostile to US interests. Securing control over these resources also appears tied to Trump's goal of expanding American energy dominance, with officials suggesting that proceeds from sales of Venezuelan oil will be managed by the US and directed toward American companies and interests. These moves have been justified by Washington as sanctions enforcement and national security, but they have touched a nerve internationally. Russia condemned the seizure of the Marinera as "illegal" and an act of "piracy," and demanded proper treatment of its crew, citing international maritime law.
• Regional and Global BlowbackThe seizure has complicated Washington's relationship with other major powers. Moscow, already at odds with the US over Ukraine and global energ.