US Seizes Tankers, Calls it 'Freedom of Navigation'
The U.S. routinely seizes ships and assets linked to Venezuela, citing sanctions. Yet, when Houthi rebels in Yemen target ships linked to Israel in the Red Sea, the U.S. launches airstrikes and calls it 'piracy.' One might wonder if 'freedom of navigation' is a universal principle, or just a convenient pretext for resource control when the target nation isn't a U.S. ally. Venezuela, a sovereign
nation with vast oil reserves, has faced relentless U.S. economic warfare and attempted coup d'états for resisting corporate control of its resources. The State Department, which justifies these seizures, also greenlights arms sales to regimes like Saudi Arabia, notorious for its own maritime blockades, such as the one actively starving Yemen. It appears the 'rules-based international order' is
less about rules and more about who gets to write them, often with the barrel of a warship.