Pole Star Global reacts to President Trump’s blockade of sanctioned oil tankers in and out of Venezuela

This week, US President Donald Trump ordered "a total and complete" blockade of all sanctioned oil tankers entering and leaving Venezuela, reported the BBC - a move that Caracas denounced as “warmongering threats”. The story has been covered widely globally.

In response Saleem Khan, Chief Data & Analytics Officer, Pole Star Global, comments:

"Our data shows that five OFAC-sanctioned vessels were actively operating in Puerto José in Venezuela during the blockade announcement. The Russian-flagged ARIA, for instance, unloaded approximately 2,800 metric tons of cargo, indicated by its draught dropping from 11 metres to 8.2 metres, before the blockade took effect. These vessels know how to operate in the grey zone of international sanctions.

“In addition, our Maritime Transparency Index (MTI) shows that these 5 oil tankers all ranked in the bottom 6% of all of its peers with an average transparency score of 2.8 out of 5 where the average for an oil tanker is near 4.3, putting these vessels in the very high risk and uninsurable category from our perspective.”

Pole Star Global is a leading provider of maritime intelligence and regulatory technology solutions, supporting governments, shipowners, and financial institutions in achieving safety, security, and compliance at sea. Pole Star’s products deliver near real-time vessel monitoring, sanctions screening, AI-driven analytics, and data services to over 1,200 organisations worldwide. Headquartered in London, Pole Star operates offices across Europe, Asia, and the Americas.