Posted by BW Actual on Jan 8th 2026
BLACKWATER USA | DAILY BRIEF
Venezuela
- U.S. forces seized two more oil tankers linked to Venezuela yesterday.
- One was the newly Russian-flagged Marinera, which changed its name and registration two weeks ago in an unsuccessful effort to evade the U.S. forces that have been pursuing it.
- The other was the sanctioned and Cameroonian-flagged Sophia, which was allegedly bound for China with about two million barrels of Venezuelan oil loaded last week.
- The seizures are part of an effort to enforce the blockade Pres. Trump imposed on Venezuela's ports, and they confirm speculation that enforcement won't end with a change in power in Caracas.
China
- Oil traders expect China's independent ("teapot") refiners to switch to Iranian and Russian alternatives since U.S. intervention in Venezuela looks likely to divert discounted Venezuelan oil to U.S. refineries instead.
- Analysts say Russia and Iran both supply enough sanctioned - and thus discounted - oil to fulfill teapot refiners' demand in full without forcing them to resort to pricier, unsanctioned sources.
Colombia
- Pres. Trump and his leftist Colombian counterpart, Gustavo Petro, appear to be mending relations that frayed in recent months and seemed to be on the verge of breaking this week when Trump threatened military action against Colombia.
- Petro initiated the reconciliation with a phone call that apparently went so well that Trump called it a "great honor." Trump then invited Petro to visit Washington sometime.
Ukraine
- For the fourth winter in a row, Russia is working to freeze Ukraine into submission by targeting its heat and power infrastructure during the cold winter months. Recent Russian strikes on Dnipro left one million Ukrainians without heat or electricity.
- Meanwhile, Pres. Zelensky said he'd like to meet with Pres. Trump again soon. Zelensky wants to talk through two sticking points in the peace proposal that U.S. and Ukrainian officials are negotiating: control of Donetsk and the future of the Zaporizhzhia nuclear power plant.
- Russia still hasn't responded to the current proposal and is highly unlikely to embrace a plan that gives Zelensky the additional concessions he's lobbying for.