Jan. 7 (UPI) -- Russia dispatched naval vessels to protect an oil tanker being chased across the Atlantic by the U.S. military for evading American sanctions and transporting Iranian oil.
U.S. officials said Russia sent two naval ships and a submarine to escort the Russian-flagged Marinera, which is currently in the North Atlantic between Iceland and Britain, heading northeast.
The United States has deployed at least 10 special-ops military aircraft and transporter aircraft thought to be carrying helicopters to RAF bases in the United Kingdom in recent days, possibly in preparation for an interdiction.
The U.S. Coast Guard attempted to execute a warrant to seize the tanker in the Caribbean in December, when it was believed to be headed to Venezuela in contravention of a partial U.S. blockade, with U.S. officials saying Tuesday that U.S. forces now planned to board it.
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