Irish airspace used by US military to enforce illegal Venezuela blockade

Ireland has allowed its airspace to be used by a US military aircraft, which was tracking a tanker attempting to evade the illegal Washington blockade of Venezuela. Not only that, but the Irish Air Corps used its own C295 maritime surveillance aircraft to assist in the tracking of the vessel, known as the Marinera.

As pointed out by American independent journalist Adam Johnson, the United States is the:

…only one out of 193 UN member states [that] sanctions oil from Venezuela

Despite this, he notes how media routinely refer to a “shadow fleet” of ships ferrying “illicit oil,” even though there is no legal basis for such a framing. This imperial criminality hasn’t stopped the Irish government making a mockery of its neutrality sham, however, as it assisted in surveilling the Marinera some 250 miles west of Ireland’s coast as the vessel moved north.

Ship being tracked may have aided Hezbollah’s fight against Zionist genocide

According to the Guardian, the ship was previously known as Bella 1, and has been:

…under sanctions by the US treasury since July 2024, accused by the American authorities of being involved in carrying illicit cargo for a company owned by Hezbollah, the Iranian-backed Lebanese group.

Again we see material held on board being characterised as “illicit”, with nothing to substantiate this description.

Hezbollah was at the time one of the few parties upholding international law by seeking to deter the US-‘Israeli’ holocaust in Gaza through armed resistance. This was before the November 2024 ceasefire agreement was signed by the ‘Israeli’ and Lebanese states when it became clear the continuation of the fight was untenable for both sides.

The Bella 1 had evaded capture in December 2025 while in the Caribbean Sea, after it was approached by US Coast Guard but refused to permit boarding. It was then renamed to the Marinera and registered under a Russian flag.

There is speculation that Britain is also allowing its air bases to be used as a staging post for enforcing the illegal pursuit of the ship, with flights of C-17 planes and AC-130 gunships interpreted as a possible build-up to US action against the vessel. The latter were seen at RAF Mildenhall on Sunday January 4, the same airbase from which a Boeing P-8 Poseidon reconnaissance aircraft departed before flying over Ireland.

Ireland breaks its own rules — and international law

Irish policy on such flights only permits them if their presence “does not form part of a military exercise or operation.” The Irish Times reports that:

A review of air traffic control communications confirms the P-8 travelled across Ireland for operational purposes. A member of the flight crew told an ATC officer at about 1:10pm that the aircraft was heading for a waypoint off the west coast, at which point it would go “operational”.

He said the aircraft would have a “due regard” status, an aviation term often used by military aircraft to indicate they would be undertaking unusual operations.

Of course, the Irish government already makes no attempt to adhere to its own policies, with Shannon airport constantly in use as a key cog in the machinery of genocide. US aircraft routinely land there before heading on towards the illegitimate settler-colony of ‘Israel’.

The website Shannon Watch tracks the presence of American warplanes at the airport, with a January 4 report showing a list of such aircraft between 1 Jan and 31 Aug 2025. It reveals almost daily arrivals of flights enabling the continued operation of US empire, with:

…most of the US military and military contracted aircraft were on their way to or from forward operating bases in or near the Middle East.

Despite the overwhelming support for Palestine among the Irish population, the government of Micheál Martin has made the nation a key participant in one of history’s most appalling crimes.

Martin pledges vassalage to US gangsterism

It is now assisting Washington’s full-blooded return to the Monroe doctrine. The doctrine that has left a vast trail of corpses across Latin America. The goals of the blockade Martin and co. aid are no longer being disguised. Ghoulish henchmen of US president Donald Trump like Senator Tom Cotton now openly acknowledge the true target is Venezuelan civilians, saying:

The lights are literally going to go off. They’re not going to be able to pay policemen or firefighters or teachers… unless they begin to cooperate with Pres. Trump.

The brazenness of such statements is becoming a familiar feature of political discourse, as brutish authoritarians increasingly flaunt their impunity while openly violating the law. As this mafia era of geopolitics proceeds, the Irish government pledges its intention to be front of the queue among those kneeling to kiss the godfather’s hand.

Featured image via the Canary