Russia has dispatched navy assets to protect a sanctioned oil tanker as it crosses the Atlantic, amid mounting threats from the US to seize the vessel.

The move comes after US forces were said to be preparing to board the ship, which has a long history of transporting Venezuelan crude oil and was last believed to be sailing between Scotland and Iceland.

According to CBS News, Russia has now stepped in to escort the tanker in a development that raises the prospect of a dramatic showdown between the superpowers on the high seas.

By sending navy ships into the North Atlantic, Vladimir Putin is signalling to Donald Trump that he can't act without consequences, following the US president's threat to use the military to seize Greenland. 

The vessel, which is currently empty, had previously operated under the name Bella 1. Last month, the US Coast Guard attempted to board it in the Caribbean, armed with a warrant to seize the ship over alleged breaches of US sanctions and claims it had shipped Iranian oil.

However, the tanker then abruptly changed course, renamed itself Marinera and reportedly reflagged from Guyana to Russia.

Donald Trump last month said he had ordered a 'blockade' of sanctioned oil tankers entering and leaving Venezuela, a policy the government in Caracas branded 'theft'.

In the run-up to the US seizure of the country's former leader Nicolás Maduro on Saturday, Trump repeatedly accused Venezuela's government of using ships to smuggle drugs into the US.

Two US officials told CBS News on Tuesday that American forces were planning to board the Marinera and that Washington would prefer to seize the vessel rather than sink it.

Moscow's Foreign Ministry says it expects Western countries to respect principles of freedom of navigation. 

The US military's Southern Command reinforced that message in a social media post, saying it 'remains ready to support our US government agency partners in standing against sanctioned vessels and actors transiting through this region.

'Our sea services are vigilant, agile, and postured to track vessels of interest. When the call comes, we will be there.'

Footage posted by Russian television network RT purports to show a US Coast Guard cutter chasing the Russian-flagged ship.  

The tanker's north Atlantic position, combined with rough weather and long distances from land, is thought to be making any boarding operation difficult. 

AIS tracking data, which can be spoofed or falsified, suggested the ship was around 2,000km (1,200 miles) west of continental Europe on Tuesday.

Its approach towards Europe has also coincided with the arrival of around 10 US military transport aircraft and helicopters.

Russia said it was 'monitoring with concern' the situation surrounding the ship and accused the US and Nato of excessive scrutiny.

'At present, our vessel is sailing in the international waters of the North Atlantic under the state flag of the Russian Federation and in full compliance with the norms of international maritime law,' Russia's foreign ministry said.

'For reasons unclear to us, the Russian ship is being given increased and clearly disproportionate attention by the US and Nato military, despite its peaceful status.

'We expect that Western countries, which declare their commitment to freedom of navigation on the high seas, will begin adhering to this principle themselves.'

Under international law, ships are protected by the country whose flag they fly. But maritime experts say the tanker's rebranding is unlikely to deter US action.

Dimitris Ampatzidis, senior risk and compliance analyst at maritime intelligence firm Kpler, told BBC Verify that changing the ship's name and flag may count for little.

'US action is driven by the vessel's underlying identity [IMO number], ownership/control networks, and sanctions history, not by its painted markings or flag claim,' he said.

Ampatzidis added that switching to the Russian registry could spark 'diplomatic friction' but would not necessarily prevent US enforcement.

Before any US military operation launched from the UK, Washington would be expected to inform its ally. For now, the UK Ministry of Defence has declined to comment, saying it will not discuss the military activities of other nations.

In what could be a diplomatic nightmare for Keir Starmer, it is believed American troops would use the UK as their launchpad for the assault. 

Over the weekend, ten C-17 Globemasters and a pair of AC-130J Ghostriders landed at two RAF bases, RAF Fairford in Gloucestershire and RAF Mildenhall in Suffolk, signalling a possible indication of further action.

The planes have come from Fort Campbell, Kentucky and Hunter, Georgia - airfields home to the 160th SOAR or Night Stalkers who carried out the attack on Caracas.

The C-17 Globemaster is a large military transport aircraft, often deployed in tactical and strategic missions as well as for transporting soldiers and cargo. 

The AC-130J Ghostrider offers close air support, air interdiction and armed reconnaissance. 

US military aircraft flying from RAF Mildenhall in Suffolk are monitoring the ship, according to flight tracking data.

Also aiding the search are RAF Typhoon fighter jets, accompanied by KC2 aerial refuelling tankers.

By claiming Russian status, the legalities of confronting the tanker could become more complicated.

At one point, Venezuelan officials had also discussed placing armed military personnel on the tanker - disguising them as civilians for defence purposes, according to CBS.

After arriving in Fairford, US personnel unloaded Chinook and Black Hawk helicopters, both used by the regiment for special operations and deployed in the raid on Maduro's home.

A spokesman for the US air force did not confirm the details of the operation.

They told the Telegraph: 'US Air Forces Europe – Air Forces Africa routinely hosts transient US military aircraft (and personnel) in accordance with access, basing, and overflight agreements with allies and partners. Taking into account operational security for US assets and personnel, further details are not releasable at this time.'

However, analysts have put forward the theory that the movement of equipment could be linked to a potential mission to capture the Marinera.

Matthew Savill, director of military sciences at the Royal United Services Institute (RUSI), said the build-up could hint towards several potential missions.

Mr Savill explained that it could range from building up forces for a potential operation in the Middle East or Africa, to preparing a mission to board the Marinera.

'But it could be a cunning misdirection. When they launched Midnight Hammer (to strike Iranian nuclear facilities) they had one thing tracking with transponders on', he said.

'It's not implausible that while we're all watching that, there's something flying around over there that we're not seeing.'

The capture of the Marinera could see a repeat of scenes from last month when the US Coast Guard led a dramatic raid on The Skipper, a tanker used to transport sanctioned oil from Venezuela and Iran.

Ten days later, another vessel named the Centuries carrying Venezuelan oil was halted and boarded, but not seized. 

The US says the network of shadow vessels raises funds for 'foreign terrorist organisations', using the cause as justification for armed US personnel abseiling from helicopters onto The Skipper.

Tankers and cargo ships have been fleeing Venezuela as the US had increased its pressure on the country in recent weeks.

Mr Trump imposed a blockade of all sanctioned tankers bound for Venezuela in December. But the Marinera evaded US officials and set off across the Atlantic.

More than a dozen sanctioned tankers fled Venezuela in 'dark mode' in an effort to evade the US blockade.

The 16 vessels, mostly loaded with Venezuelan crude oil and fuel, used tactics that included disguising their locations or turning off their transmission signals.

Over the past few weeks, the ships were visible on satellite imagery docked in Venezuelan ports, but they were all gone from those locations by Saturday in the wake of Maduro's capture by US forces.

While Trump claimed the oil embargo on Venezuela remained in 'full force' after Maduro's extraction, the vessels still made the risky decision to leave port.

All the identified vessels are under sanctions and most of them are supertankers that typically carry Venezuelan crude oil to China, according to TankerTrackers.com and shipping documents from state-run Venezuelan oil company PDVSA. 

At least four of the tankers were tracked by satellite data sailing east 30 miles from shore, using fake ship names and misrepresenting their locations in a strategy known as 'spoofing'.

Their unauthorised departures could be viewed as an early act of defiance against interim President Delcy Rodríguez's leadership.

Three of the ships were seen moving closely together, indicating coordination, but it wasn't immediately clear where the vessels were heading.

The tankers that left without authorisation were contracted by the oil traders Alex Saab and Ramón Carretero, according to the New York Times.

Both were sanctioned by the US for having close ties to Maduro's regime.

While Saab was jailed in the US in 2021, he was subsequently freed in an exchange deal two years later under Joe Biden's presidency. 

Fifteen of the 16 ships that were on the move on Saturday were under US sanctions for hauling Iranian and Russian oil. 

The Aquila II sent out a signal falsely identifying itself as the Cape Balder and spoofed its coordinates to appear in the Baltic Sea. 

Built between 2003-4, the vessel is designated as very large at 333 metres long.

It has a capacity of over two million barrels and was sanctioned for carrying Russian crude oil and for being part of Moscow's 'shadow fleet'.

Meanwhile, the Bertha - operating under the alias Ekta - indicated it was off the coast of Nigeria.

The vessel was sanctioned for transporting millions of barrels of Iranian oil. 

The Veronica III, also 333 metres, used the fake name DS Vector and is sending a 'zombie' signal to appear close to the west African country.

It was sanctioned for carrying millions of barrels of Iranian oil.

By Sunday, another ship called the Vesna, using the alias Priya, was hundreds of miles out from Venezuela. 

Built in 2000, it measures 240 metres long and is designated as Aframax class.

Bosses from US oil companies are expected to visit the White House as early as tomorrow to discuss investments in Venezuela, Reuters reported.

A Ministry of Defence spokesman said: 'As routine, we do not comment on the operational activity of other nations, including third party use of UK bases.

'The US is the UK's principal defence and security partner. The depth of our defence relationship with the US remains an essential part of our security.'

Trump announced a deal with the Venezuelan regime to give the US 30 to 50 million barrels of oil which could be worth up to $2billion.

The president has openly stated that the military operation to depose Maduro this past weekend was, in part, an attempt to extract some of oil-rich Venezuela's stock.

'I am pleased to announce that the Interim Authorities in Venezuela will be turning over between 30 and 50 MILLION Barrels of High Quality, Sanctioned Oil, to the United States of America,' he posted to Truth Social.

Trump also announced that he will be in control of the money made off sales - which at market price, could be worth up to $2billion according to Reuters - of the oil.

'This Oil will be sold at its Market Price, and that money will be controlled by me, as President of the United States of America, to ensure it is used to benefit the people of Venezuela and the United States!'

Trump has placed Energy Secretary Chris Wright in charge of executing the plan which is scheduled to begin immediately.

'It will be taken by storage ships, and brought directly to unloading docks in the United States,' he wrote.