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The US has launched an operation to seize a Russia-linked tanker in the north Atlantic, after a previous bid failed as it sailed to Venezuela, according to a UK official.
The Marinera, an empty oil tanker, has broadcast positioning data that shows it making a sudden turn at 11.26am GMT in the Atlantic 325km from Iceland.
Aircraft position data also shows three US Air Force Pilatus U-28 Draco aircraft, used in support of special forces operations, heading north from Wick in northern Scotland.
An RAF P-8 Poseidon aircraft, which can be used for anti-submarine warfare and surveillance, has also headed into the area from RAF Lossiemouth, also in northern Scotland.
The UK official did not give more details about the operation beyond confirming it was taking place and the Pentagon did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
Downing Street said that “as routine, we don’t comment on the operational activity of other nations, and that’s a long-standing position. we don’t comment on the operational activity”.
It added that the principle also applied to the third-party use of UK bases.
People familiar with the matter said that approval for operations launched from US bases in the UK is considered on a “case by case basis”.
The attempted seizure comes at a delicate time in international relations following the US’s seizure of Venezuelan President Nicolás Maduro and as western powers try to negotiate a peace agreement between Russia and Ukraine.
On Wednesday, Russian state media reported that a helicopter was trying to land what appeared to be US forces on the tanker.
On Tuesday, it had posted footage it claims was taken from the deck of the Marinera showing what appeared to be a US Coast Guard vessel shadowing the tanker.
On Tuesday evening, the Marinera was overflown by a European Space Agency Sentinel-1 satellite, which takes radar images. Imagery from the pass confirmed that a vessel roughly the size of a US Coast Guard cutter was about 1.75 nautical miles behind the Marinera.
Reports earlier on Wednesday said that Russia was sending a submarine and potentially other naval vessels to help escort the tanker back to Russia.
The US previously sought to interdict the ship, previously called the Bella 1, under Iran-related sanctions, in December. An attempt was made to board it as it approached the Caribbean heading towards Venezuela, prompting it to flee east across the Atlantic.
The US also cited the tanker’s lack of proper flag registration as grounds for seizure. The ship was, at the time, operating under a false Guyanese flag. Under the laws of the sea, warships are allowed to board suspected stateless vessels.
Since it began its flight, however, the ship was sold to a Russian company and reflagged as a Russian vessel.
The attempted seizure of the vessel is likely to further strain western ties with Russian President Vladimir Putin amid negotiations over a peace deal with Ukraine.
It may also lead to questions in the UK, where Starmer has faced pressure to say whether he thinks the US operation to capture Maduro was legal under international law.
“The US is the UK’s principal defence and security partner,” a spokesperson for the Ministry of Defence said. “The depth of our defence relationship with the US remains an essential part of our security.”