'Sink some American boats': Russian MP warns of retaliation after US seizes tanker

Russia issued a sharp warning to the United States after American military forces seized a Russian-flagged oil tanker in the North Atlantic Ocean, with a senior Russian lawmaker suggesting that attacks on US ships — including the possible use of nuclear weapons — could be considered in response.

The tanker, Marinera, earlier known as Bella 1, was seized on Wednesday after weeks of pursuit by a US Coast Guard warship. Reports said the vessel had earlier slipped past a US blockade of sanctioned oil tankers near Venezuela.

Reacting to the seizure, Alexei Zhuravlev, first deputy chairman of the State Duma Committee on Defence, described the US action as “outright piracy” and said Moscow should “respond militarily.”

In a statement on Telegram, Zhuravlev said Russia could “attack with torpedoes, and sink a couple of American Coast Guards involved in the operation,” calling it “the only way to ‘stop the US’,” which he accused of acting with impunity following recent operations in Venezuela. He added that Russia’s military doctrine “envisages the use of nuclear weapons” in response to attacks on national interests.

“This is the most common form of piracy — the seizure of a civilian vessel by an armed American fleet. It’s essentially the same as an attack on Russian territory, since the tanker was sailing under our national flag,” Zhuravlev said.

He also claimed that Russian naval assets, including a submarine, were operating near the tanker at the time of the seizure, remarks seen as a significant escalation given that both Russia and the United States possess large nuclear arsenals.

Following the incident, Moscow strongly condemned the move, saying no country has the right to use force against vessels legally registered under another state, particularly on the high seas.

In a Telegram statement, Russia’s Ministry of Transport said the Marinera received a temporary permit to sail under the Russian Federation flag on December 24, 2025, in accordance with Russian and international law.

“On December 24, 2025, the Marinera received a temporary permit to sail under the Russian Federation flag, issued in accordance with Russian law and international law. Today, at approximately 3:00 pm Moscow time, the vessel was boarded by US Navy forces in the high seas outside territorial waters of any state, and contact with the vessel was lost,” the statement said.

The ministry cited the 1982 UN Convention on the Law of the Sea, stating that freedom of navigation applies in international waters and that no state has the right to use force against vessels registered under another country.

The US European Command said on X that the tanker violated US sanctions, was tracked using a US Coast Guard submarine drone, and was seized under a warrant issued by a US federal court.

The Marinera, sanctioned in 2024, has since become a flashpoint between Washington and Moscow, with the Wall Street Journal reporting that Russia sent naval assets, including a submarine, to bring the vessel back.

(With inputs from ANI)