China's oil from Venezuela is now traveling under regularly-flagged ships under nations that can be convinced if need be to alter course or delay deliveries in the event something happens.

The flag on the ship doesn't matter. iirc it was the second ship the Pirate King hijacked that had legitimate, Panamanian, registry. It was seized anyway for carrying contraband cargo. Then the Pirate King seized a Russian flag ship, with the aid of the UK. While the ship's registration varied, when it was assaulted, it was legally registered as Russian, with Lloyd's.

The ship hijacked today was apparently flying a Guyanese flag. This article from the Beeb does not clearly state whether the registration is legit, or not.

Seems registration does not matter to the Pirate King. He thinks that is all "our oil", so any ship taking it anywhere, without first paying the Pirate King, is subject to being hijacked.

"The only oil leaving Venezuela will be oil that is coordinated properly and lawfully," the Southern Command said.

"The Veronica is the latest tanker operating in defiance of President Trump's established quarantine of sanctioned vessels in the Caribbean," US Southern Command said in a post on social media.

It suggests Washington's crackdown on the so-called dark fleet, comprising more than 1,000 vessels that transport sanctioned oil, will continue as the US works with Venezuela's interim government to control the country's oil sales.

The blockade has sharply curtailed Venezuelan oil exports, with only ships associated with Chevron and bound for the US operating as usual, according to Matt Smith, head of US analysis at Kpler.

BBC: US forces seize a sixth Venezuela-linked oil tanker in Caribbean Sea

It's all about control. Control of Venezuela's oil. Control of access to the Panama Canal. Control of access to Greenland's resources. Pay the Pirate King, or you are denied access.

Steve