The submarine and destroyer sent by Russia to escort the oil tanker "Bella 1" when it was pursued by the U.S. "left very quickly," Donald Trump stated in an interview with Sean Hannity on Fox News.
The host asked the U.S. president if Vladimir Putin had called him after the tanker "Bella 1" was already captured by American forces.
"I don’t want to say this, but the fact is that the Russian ships — there was a submarine and a destroyer — both left very quickly when we arrived. We took control of the vessel, and right now the oil is being unloaded," Trump said, as quoted by Meduza.
The U.S. Coast Guard had been pursuing the oil tanker "Bella 1" since late December 2025, suspecting it of transporting sanctioned oil. When the vessel was attempted to be detained in the Caribbean Sea, the crew refused to comply with the demands of the American military and changed course, then painted the Russian flag on the hull. A few days later, the vessel was renamed "Marinera" and registered with the Russian Maritime Register of Shipping. The Wall Street Journal reported that during the pursuit of the tanker by American forces, Russia sent a submarine and "other naval forces" to escort it. The tanker was captured on January 7.
Read: The Collapse of Russia is Just Around the Corner - Scientist
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