US forces have boarded the oil tanker M/T Tifani — previously sanctioned for smuggling Iranian crude — in the Indian Ocean between Sri Lanka and Indonesia, the Pentagon confirmed on Tuesday.
In a statement posted on social media, the Pentagon said American personnel conducted a “right-of-visit maritime interdiction” of the vessel “without incident.” Ship-tracking data placed the tanker in waters southeast of Sri Lanka at the time of the operation, although the Pentagon did not specify exact coordinates or timing.
The vessel was described as “stateless” by US authorities, despite operating under a Botswana flag. The Pentagon framed the boarding as part of broader efforts to disrupt networks suspected of moving oil and other materials in support of Iran.
“We will pursue global maritime enforcement efforts to disrupt illicit networks and interdict sanctioned vessels providing material support to Iran, anywhere they operate,” the statement said. “International waters are not a refuge for sanctioned vessels.”
The operation marks the second US maritime enforcement action in Indian Ocean waters near Sri Lanka in a week. On 14 April, US Navy assets intercepted the sanctioned tanker Rich Starry as it attempted to transit the Trump-ordered Hormuz blockade. Earlier this month, the Touska was seized in the Gulf of Oman.
The pattern places the Indian Ocean corridor between Sri Lanka and Indonesia in an active US interdiction zone — directly relevant to Sri Lanka’s crude oil import shipping routes and maritime insurance calculations as the Hormuz standoff continues.
