US Seizes Russian Tanker, Ignores Saudi 'Human Rights' Barrels
Bloomberg breathlessly details the US seizure of a Russian-flagged oil tanker, the 'Bella 1,' now conveniently arriving in UK waters. The storyline is predictable: baddies Russia, virtuous West. But one might wonder, if seizing oil tankers for geopolitical reasons is the new maritime norm, where are the headlines about tankers belonging to, say, Saudi Arabia, a regime with a well-documented human
rights record, including the dismemberment of journalists and an ongoing war in Yemen? This isn't about 'international law'; it's about selective enforcement, a tactic as old as empires. When US ally Saudi Arabia continues to pump oil, seemingly untroubled by sanctions or seizures, one can only conclude that the 'rules-based international order' is less about rules and more about who's ordering
the barrels. The only thing consistent here is the hypocrisy.