The U.S. Coast Guard attempted to board the tanker, which is accused of breaking U.S. sanctions and transporting Iranian oil headed to Venezuela, in the Caribbean last month. The vessel refused to be boarded, turned away, and fled. It then changed its name to the Marinera and re-registered as a Russian vessel.

Russia formally asked the United States to halt pursuit of Venezuelan oil tanker Marinera after the vessel escaped U.S. Coast Guard interception in the Caribbean.

About a dozen tankers loaded with Venezuelan crude and fuel departed in recent days from the country's waters in dark mode, seemingly breaking a strict blockade imposed by the U.S. amid intense pressure that mounted until the capture of deposed President Nicolas Maduro,