From the New York Times, I'm Natalie Kittrowaf.

This is the Daily.

In its escalating campaign against Venezuela,

the Trump administration has gone from shooting down drug boats

to now trying to seize multiple oil tankers in the Caribbean Sea.

Today, my colleague Anatoly Kermanayev explains why President Trump is shifting his tactics on Venezuela,

and what that might tell us about his true ending.

Music and it's Wednesday. It's Wednesday, December 24th. Anatoly, Merry Christmas.

Thanks for joining us today.

Thank you for having me.

So the last time we talked to you was when the U.S. military was ramping up these strikes on boats in Latin America that they claimed we're running drugs to the U.S.

We are coming back to you now because over the past few weeks, we've been hearing about this

new kind of escalation in the Caribbean, which is the U.S. seizing ships that have been carrying

Venezuelan oil.

So help us understand how you're interpreting this new element to this operation,

which has been dramatic in its own right. We have seen major shifts in the narrative over the last

few weeks, Natalie. The focus has shifted from a primarily military campaign to primarily economic campaign. The US government

has moved away from both strikes in the Caribbean and the alleged campaign to stop the flow

of drugs coming from Venezuela to the United States, and they have moved towards Venezuelan oil.

They have moved towards taking action against tankers exporting

Venezuelan oil, the biggest source of the country's revenue, with a very clear attempt

to squeeze the country's finances, squeeze into the point of strangulation, and achieve

...