Venezuela’s foreign affairs minister denounced the seizure, calling it a “blatant theft” and “an act of international piracy.”

WASHINGTON (AP) — President Donald Trump said Wednesday that the United States has seized an oil tanker off the coast of Venezuela as tensions mount with the government of President Nicolás Maduro.

The United States has dramatically escalated tensions in the Caribbean after federal authorities seized an oil tanker linked to Iran and Venezuela under a judicial warrant. U.S. officials say the vessel was part of a covert oil-smuggling network tied to Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps,

The U.S. government seized the ship off Venezuela this week for allegedly transporting oil to sanctioned Iran.

The incident involved JetBlue Flight 1112 from Curaçao, which is just off the coast of Venezuela, en route to New York City’s JFK airport. It comes as the U.S. military has stepped up its drug interdiction activities in the Caribbean and is also seeking to increase pressure on Venezuela’s government.

The U.S. government carried out its seizure of the M/T Skipper off the coast of Venezuela on Wednesday just as a judge-signed warrant was set to expire, according to the document which was unsealed on Friday.