KVIA•Dec 22
Panama's Foreign Minister Addresses Irregularities in Intercepted Tanker Cases
Panama's Foreign Minister, Javier Martinez-Acha, confirmed that a Panama-flagged oil tanker intercepted by the U.S. in the Caribbean, along with another unflagged vessel, did not comply with national and international maritime laws. During a press conference, he highlighted that the vessels had disconnected tracking instruments and altered their names, raising serious concerns about their operations. The U.S. Coast Guard seized the tanker 'Centuries' for carrying sanctioned oil from Venezuela, although it was initially misidentified as Panama-flagged. Meanwhile, another tanker, 'Bella 1', is under pursuit by U.S. forces and is linked to Iran. Panama is closely monitoring the situation amid rising tensions between the U.S. and Venezuela.
Politics sanctions maritime-law1 min read