US seizes tanker with Iranian crude falsely flying Guyana flag in Indian Ocean

Last Updated on Thursday, 23 April 2026, 16:43 by Denis Chabrol

The Maritime Administration Department (MARAD) on Thursday said the oil tanker, Majestic X, that was seized by US forces in the Indian Ocean was bearing a false Guyana flag.

“This ship is not egistered in Guyana; thus, the registration is false and fraudulent. While the name of the vessel has changed, the IMO number remains recorded in the international database as PHONIX. There is no record of this vessel or name in Guyana’s registry. Therefore, the ship is fraudulently flying the Guyana flag,” the regulatory agency said in a statement.

MARAD noted that the vessel, intercepted for transporting Iranian oil, was previously sanctioned by the United States (US) Treasury Department in 2024 under the name PHONIX for smuggling Iranian crude oil in violation of American sanctions on the Islamic Republic.

MARAD reiterated that Guyana operates a closed registry. The regulatory authority said registration of vessels under the Guyana flag is limited to ships owned by Guyanese nationals, residents, citizens of Caribbean Community states (CARICOM), and corporate bodies established under the laws of Guyana. “None of the purported owners of the vessel in question falls into any of these categories.”

The incidences of false Guyana registrations have been recognised since 2021. MARAD said the perpetrators of that fraud have targeted several countries, including Guyana, Panama, and regional states. The International Maritime Organization (IMO) publishes a list of all ships falsely flying flags of member states.

Government says the Maritime Administration Department and the Ministry of Foreign Affairs continue to share information on these false registrations, which come into our possession with all United Nations (UN) maritime states, and relevant regional and international maritime associations.

The sanctions being applied by the US, United Kingdom, and other Western States are in part a response to the threats posed by these false registrations.

MARAD says it is wary of the intent of some local news outlets and media agencies who appear determined to share unconfirmed and false allegations as to the integrity of Guyana’s ship registry.

ABC reported that the US Defense Department released video footage of U.S. forces on the deck of the oil tanker Majestic X, which was seized in the Indian Ocean.

“We will continue global maritime enforcement to disrupt illicit networks and interdict vessels providing material support to Iran, wherever they operate,” a Pentagon statement said.

Ship-tracking data showed the Majestic X in the Indian Ocean between Sri Lanka and Indonesia, roughly the same location as the oil tanker Tifani, earlier seized by American forces. It had been bound for Zhoushan, China.

There was no immediate response from Iran on the news of the seizure.

The seizure came a day after Iran attacked three cargo ships in the strait, capturing two of them, in a move that intensified its assault on shipping in the key waterway through which 20% of the world’s traded oil passes in peacetime.

On Tuesday, U.S. President Donald Trump extended a ceasefire while maintaining an American blockade of Iranian ports.