The United States has seized another Venezuela-linked tanker, US officials told Reuters on Thursday, ahead of a meeting between US President Donald Trump and Venezuelan opposition leader Maria Corina Machado.

The seizure marks the sixth vessel targeted since mid-December that was either carrying Venezuelan oil or had ⁠done so in the past.

The officials, speaking on the condition of anonymity, said the seizure took place in the Caribbean.

The US military’s Southern Command confirmed the predawn operation, saying US forces apprehended Motor/Tanker Veronica “without incident”.

It said the Veronica was “operating in defiance of President Trump’s established quarantine of sanctioned vessels in the Caribbean”.

“The only oil leaving Venezuela will be oil that is coordinated properly and lawfully,” Southern Command ‍said in a statement.