The U.S. Coast Guard had to temporarily suspend its operation to seize the sanctioned oil tanker Bella 1 after a Russian flag appeared on board.
U.S. Coast Guard vessels had been pursuing the vessel for more than 10 days, maintaining a distance of just 800 metres, according to officials who spoke to The New York Times.
The flag was painted on recently in an effort to claim Russian protection, the officials said on Tuesday.
According to the report, the pursuit started on December 21. The U.S. Coast Guard tried to intercept the Bella 1 as it sailed to Venezuela to pick up oil.
The pursuit became complicated after the Russian flag suddenly appeared on the side of the vessel.
Initially, the US authorities considered the tanker a false-flagged vessel. Such vessels are subject to arrest and can be detained for fraud under the United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea (UNCLOS)
However, experts warned that if the Bella 1 was indeed re-registered under Russia the seizure could lead to serious diplomatic tensions.
Washington couldn't rule out the possibility that Moscow might have registered the vessel without the necessary inspections.
The US is currently trying to determine the tanker's status through diplomatic channels.
The Bella 1 is owned by a Turkish company and is subject to US sanctions for transporting Iranian oil to terrorist organisations like the Hezbollah, the Houthis, and Iran’s IRGC, according to US authorities. The vessel is part of a shadow fleet that is used to transport oil from Russia, Iran, and Venezuela. Most of the crew members are from Russia, India, and Ukraine, officials say.
The vessel recently changed its course away from the Mediterranean Sea, heading toward Greenland or Iceland. It is likely that Bella 1 is not carrying any cargo. The crew had also switched off their transponders since December 17, meaning, the vessel has been untracked as it continues to flee from the U.S. Coast Guard.