The United States has seized a large oil tanker off the coast of Venezuela, President Donald Trump said Wednesday, further escalating tensions between Washington and Caracas.

“We’ve just seized a tanker on the coast of Venezuela, a large tanker, very large — the largest one ever seized, actually,” Trump said at the start of a roundtable with business leaders at the White House.

“And other things are happening, so you’ll be seeing that later and you’ll be talking about that later with some other people.”

Trump did not immediately give further details on the incident.

His announcement came a day before Venezuelan Nobel Peace Prize winner and opposition leader Maria Corina Machado was set to address the world from Oslo after coming out of hiding.

Trump’s administration has piled pressure on Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro, deploying a fleet of warships and the world’s largest aircraft under the pretext of combating drug trafficking.

The United States has also carried out deadly strikes on more than 20 alleged drug boats in the region, killing at least 87 people.

Washington has accused Maduro of leading the alleged “Cartel of the Suns,” which it declared a terrorist organization last month.

Trump told Politico on Monday that Maduro’s “days are numbered” and declined to rule out a US ground invasion against Venezuela.

Maduro says the US is bent on regime change and wants to seize Venezuela’s oil reserves.

The Venezuelan army swore in 5,600 soldiers on Saturday after Maduro called for stepped-up military recruitment.

Holders Argentina and leading contenders Spain were handed kind draws for the 2026 World Cup in a star-studded ceremony on Friday, which saw US President Donald Trump receive FIFA’s new peace prize.

The event in Washington started the final countdown to the tournament, six months out from the first-ever 48-team World Cup, with much-fancied France among those receiving a harder task.

Lionel Messi’s Argentina will begin their defense of the trophy they won in Qatar in 2022 against Algeria, and will also face Austria and debutants Jordan in Group J.

Heavily-fancied Spain, the European champions, will kick off their campaign against first-time qualifiers Cape Verde before also taking on Uruguay and Saudi Arabia in Group H.

Thomas Tuchel’s England will hope to win Group L, which features beaten 2018 finalists Croatia as well as Ghana and Panama.

Two-time winners France, meanwhile, face awkward tests against Senegal and Erling Haaland’s Norway in Group I, which will be completed by an intercontinental play-off winner from either Iraq, Bolivia, or Suriname.

The 2026 tournament will be held across the United States, Mexico, and Canada from June 11 to July 19, with 16 more teams added to the global showpiece, up from the 32 nations involved in Qatar in 2022.

That means a total of 104 matches, compared to 64 games last time.

While the US will host the majority of matches, including the final at MetLife Stadium outside New York, three of the 16 venues will be in Mexico and two in Canada.

“We’ve worked closely with those two countries, and the coordination and friendship and relationship have been outstanding,” Trump said at the Kennedy Center after receiving his prize from FIFA president Gianni Infantino.

“It is truly one of the great honors of my life. It is such an honor to be with Gianni. He has done such an incredible job,” he added.

“The world is a safer place now. The United States a year ago was not going too well, but now it is the hottest country anywhere in the world.”

Trump seized the limelight, but Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney and Mexican President Claudia Sheinbaum were also in attendance.

While snow fell outside amid freezing temperatures in the US capital, some of the biggest stars in the American sport and entertainment world appeared on stage inside.

The event was co-hosted by supermodel Heidi Klum and American actor and comedian Kevin Hart, and featured performances by the Village People, Robbie Williams, and Andrea Bocelli.

NFL legend Tom Brady, ice hockey icon Wayne Gretzky, and former NBA superstar Shaquille O’Neal were among the stars helping to conduct the draw.

Elsewhere in the draw, co-hosts Mexico will take on South Africa in Group A in the opening game of the tournament at the Estadio Azteca in Mexico City on June 11.

Carlo Ancelotti’s Brazil and surprise 2022 semi-finalists Morocco came out together in Group C, which also features Scotland and Haiti.

Germany’s opponents in Group E will be the Ivory Coast, Ecuador, and Caribbean minnows Curacao, while Cristiano Ronaldo’s Portugal will face Uzbekistan, Colombia, and a play-off winner.

Co-hosts the United States got a manageable draw, with Paraguay, Australia, and a European play-off winner in Group D.

The top two teams in each group advance to the last 32, joined by the eight best third-placed teams.

“It will be the greatest World Cup ever, the greatest event that humanity has ever seen. We have three beautiful countries, 16 wonderful host cities, 48 excellent teams who will compete in 104 matches to become the one and only world champion,” Infantino said.

“This is like 104 Super Bowls in one month — this is the magnitude of what we are organizing,” he added of the tournament.

Six finals berths are still to be decided in the playoffs to take place in March.

Because of the complexity, teams will only learn the full details of their match venues and kick-off times on Saturday, a day after the draw.

2026 World Cup Groups

Below are the 12 groups for the 2026 World Cup in the United States, Canada, and Mexico from June 11 to July 19, 2026:

Group A

Mexico, South Africa, South Korea, a qualifier

Group B

Canada, a qualifier, Qatar, and Switzerland

Group C

Brazil, Morocco, Haiti, Scotland

Group D

United States, Paraguay, Australia, a qualifier

Group E

Germany, Curacao, Ivory Coast, Ecuador

Group F

Netherlands, Japan, a qualifier, Tunisia

Group G

Belgium, Egypt, Iran, New Zealand

Group H

Spain, Cape Verde, Saudi Arabia, Uruguay

Group I

France, Senegal, qualifier, Norway

Group J

Argentina, Algeria, Austria, Jordan

Group K

Portugal, a qualifier, Uzbekistan, and Colombia

Group L

England, Croatia, Ghana, Panama

US President Donald Trump says he believes Russia’s Vladimir Putin wants to end the Ukraine war despite inconclusive talks in Moscow, as US officials prepare for a follow-up meeting with Kyiv’s top negotiator.

Trump’s envoy Steve Witkoff and son-in-law Jared Kushner huddled into the early hours with Putin in the Kremlin but reached no breakthrough on halting Europe’s worst conflict since World War II.

The Kremlin said afterward it found parts of the US plan to end the war unacceptable, even though the proposal includes Ukraine ceding parts of the eastern Donbas region it still holds nearly four years after Russia’s invasion.

“I can tell you that they had a reasonably good meeting with President Putin,” Trump says about the talks, adding that the talks were “very good.”

Trump says it is too soon to tell what will happen “because it does take two to tango.”

Pressed on whether Witkoff and Kushner got any sense that Putin genuinely wants to halt Russia’s nearly four-year-old invasion, Trump replies: “He would like to end the war. That was their impression.”