MIAMI – In response to President Donald Trump’s recent threats of a “blockade” on sanctioned oil tankers, numerous oil ships are rerouting away from Venezuela. This move represents a significant intensification of the U.S. administration’s pressure on Venezuelan leader Nicolás Maduro.

On Tuesday, Trump utilized social media to announce, emphatically and in all caps, his directive for a “total and complete blockade of all sanctioned oil tankers” traveling to and from Venezuela. This decision could severely impact revenue streams from the country’s vast oil reserves, a crucial element in maintaining Maduro’s authority.

The precise implications of Trump’s threats remain somewhat ambiguous. During his first term, U.S. sanctions were implemented, prohibiting Americans from purchasing Venezuelan crude oil without specific authorization from the Treasury Department.

Furthermore, numerous ships have been blacklisted, forming a vast shadow fleet of often older vessels that have emerged in recent years. These ships are used to transport oil by nations like Iran, Russia, and Venezuela, which are subject to U.S. sanctions.

According to Windward, a maritime intelligence firm aiding U.S. authorities in monitoring this covert fleet, at least 30 sanctioned vessels are currently operating near Venezuela. Some of these ships have started altering their paths, likely to avoid the fate of the Skipper, a sanctioned ship recently seized by U.S. forces near Venezuela.

“It’s quite clear that this has disrupted energy flows to and from Venezuela,” said Michelle Wiese Bockmann, a senior analyst at Windward. “Every hour when we’re tracking these vessels, we are seeing tankers that are deviating, loitering or changing their behavior.”

Among those is the Hyperion, which had been sailing toward the Jose port in Venezuela before doing a 90-degree turn early Wednesday and starting to head north away from the South American mainland.

The vessel, previously part of Russia’s state-owned shipping fleet, was one of 173 sanctioned in the final days of the Biden administration for allegedly facilitating Russian oil sales in violation of sanctions over Moscow’s invasion of Ukraine.

Following the penalties, the vessel changed its flag from the Comoros to Gambia. But the West African nation deleted Hyperion — along with dozens of other vessels — from its privately run ship registry in November for allegedly using false certificates claiming to have been issued by its maritime authority.

The vessel’s ownership also is obfuscated under multiple layers of offshore companies, some of them listed in Dubai, United Arab Emirates.

“It’s just screaming that it’s in a position to be seized,” Wiese Bockmann said.

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Associated Press writer Michael Biesecker contributed to this report from Washington.