Venezuela's Maduro thanks Iran for sending tankers

Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro on Sunday thanked Iran for their solidarity as the first of five tankers loaded with gasoline reached Venezuelan waters.

The gasoline is expected to temporarily ease the South American nation's fuel crunch while defying Trump administration sanctions targeting the two US foes.

The oil tanker Fortune encountered no immediate signs of US interference as it eased through Caribbean waters toward the Venezuelan coast and Venezuelan officials celebrated the arrival.

The tanker and four behind it were finishing a high seas journey amid a burgeoning relationship between Iran and Venezuela, both of which Washington says are ruled by repressive regimes.

Venezuela sits atop the world's largest oil reserves, but it must import gasoline because production has crashed in the last two decades.

The Iranian tankers hold what analysts estimate to be enough gasoline to supply Venezuela for two to three weeks.