US Navy boards third sanctioned tanker in Indian Ocean

US Navy personnel fast-roped from MH-60S helicopters to board the tanker Bertha in the Indian Ocean on 24 February, USNI News reports, the third such capture after Veronica III and Aquila II. The vessel, which has also sailed as Martha S and EKTA, was sanctioned by the US Treasury over links to Shanghai Legendary Ship Management and designated as part of Iran's shadow fleet, according to the report. US officials said it had been tracked from the Caribbean under the administration's quarantine on Venezuela-linked tankers. USNI notes it claimed a Cook Islands flag, last valid in 2024. A US statement said no other nation could enforce sanctions "at this distance".

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