Trump holds an event with Rubio and Hegseth during vacation as tensions with Venezuela mount

WEST PALM BEACH, Fla. (AP) — President Donald Trump is gathering with top national security officials on Monday, a meeting that comes as the U.S. Coast Guard steps up efforts to interdict oil tankers in the Caribbean Sea as part of the Republican administration's escalating pressure campaign on Venezuelan President Nicolás Maduro's government.

Secretary of State Marco Rubio, Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth and Navy Secretary John Phelan are scheduled to join Trump, who is vacationing at his Mar-a-Lago resort, for what the White House called a "major announcement." Trump is expected to announce plans to build a new, large warship that Trump is calling a “battleship” and is part of his larger vision to create a “Golden Fleet" that includes as many as 50 support ships, according to people familiar with the matter who were not authorized comment publicly.

But Trump's gathering of key members of his national security team also comes at yet another inflection point in his four-month pressure campaign on the Maduro government, which began with the stated purpose of stemming the flow of illegal drugs from the South American nation but has developed into something more amorphous.

Russia’s Foreign Ministry has started evacuating the families of diplomats from Venezuela, according to a European intelligence official speaking on condition of anonymity to discuss sensitive information.

The official told The Associated Press the evacuations include women and children and began on Friday, adding that Russian Foreign Ministry officials are assessing the situation in Venezuela in “very grim tones.” The White House and Kremlin did not respond to requests for comment.

Venezuela’s Foreign Minister Yván Gil on Monday said he spoke by phone with his Russian counterpart, Sergey Lavrov, who he said expressed Russia's support for Venezuela against Trump's declared blockade of sanctioned oil tankers.

“We reviewed the aggressions and flagrant violations of international law that have been committed in the Caribbean: attacks against vessels and extrajudicial executions, and the unlawful acts of piracy carried out by the United States government,” Gil said in a statement.

More than 10 vehicles with diplomatic license plates were parked Monday morning outside Russia’s embassy in Caracas. No people could be seen going in or out of the embassy. All vehicles had moved by early afternoon.

In the Caribbean, the U.S. Coast Guard on Monday continued for the second day to chase a sanctioned oil tanker that the Trump administration describes as part of a “dark fleet” Venezuela is using to evade U.S. sanctions. The tanker, the official added, is flying under a false flag and is under a U.S. judicial seizure order.

It is the third tanker pursued by the Coast Guard, which on Saturday seized a Panama-flagged vessel called Centuries that U.S. officials said was part of the Venezuelan shadow fleet.

The Coast Guard, with assistance from the Navy, seized a sanctioned tanker called Skipper on Dec. 10, also part of the shadow fleet of tankers that the U.S. says operates on the fringes of the law to move sanctioned cargo. That ship was registered in Panama.

Trump, after that first seizure, said the U.S. would carry out a “blockade” of Venezuela. Trump has repeatedly said that Maduro's days in power are numbered.

Last week, Trump demanded that Venezuela return assets that it seized from U.S. oil companies years ago, justifying anew his announcement of a blockade against sanctioned oil tankers traveling to or from the South American country.

Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem, whose agency oversees the Coast Guard, said in a Monday appearance on “Fox & Friends” that the targeting of tankers is intended to send “a message around the world that the illegal activity that Maduro is participating in cannot stand, he needs to be gone, and that we will stand up for our people.”

While U.S. forces targeted the vessels in international waters , a tanker that's considered part of the shadow fleet was spotted moving between Venezuelan refineries, including one about three hours west of the capital, Caracas.

The tanker remained at the refinery in El Palito through Sunday, when families went to the town’s beach to relax with children now on break from school.

Music played on loudspeakers as people swam and surfed with the tanker in the background. Families and groups of teenagers enjoyed themselves, but Manuel Salazar, who has parked cars at the beach for more than three decades, noticed differences from years past, when the country’s oil-dependent economy was in better shape and the energy industry produced at least double the current 1 million barrels per day.

“Up to nine or 10 tankers would wait out there in the bay. One would leave, another would come in,” Salazar, 68, said. “Now, look, one.”

The tanker in El Palito has been identified by Transparencia Venezuela, an independent watchdog promoting government accountability, to be part of the shadow fleet.

Area residents on Sunday recalled when tankers would sound their horns at midnight New Year’s Eve, while some would even send up fireworks to celebrate the holiday.

“Before, during vacations, they’d have barbecues; now all you see is bread with bologna,” Salazar said of Venezuelan families spending the holiday at the beach next to the refinery. “Things are expensive. Food prices keep going up and up every day.”

Meanwhile, the Defense Department, under Trump's orders, continues its campaign of attacks on smaller vessels in the Caribbean and eastern Pacific Ocean that it alleges are carrying drugs to the United States and beyond.

At least 104 people have been killed in 28 known strikes since early September. The strikes have faced scrutiny from U.S. lawmakers and human rights activists, who say the administration has offered scant evidence that its targets are indeed drug smugglers and that the fatal strikes amount to extrajudicial killings.

Garcia Cano reported from El Palito, Venezuela, and Burrows reported from London.

The access ramp to the entrance of the Russian Embassy is under construction in Caracas, Venezuela, Monday, Dec. 22, 2025. (AP Photo/Matias Delacroix)

Children play at the beach near El Palito port in Puerto Cabello, Venezuela, Sunday, Dec. 21, 2025. (AP Photo/Matias Delacroix)

The El Palito refinery rises above a beach in Puerto Cabello, Venezuela, Sunday, Dec. 21, 2025. (AP Photo/Matias Delacroix)

Evana, an oil tanker, is docked at El Palito port in Puerto Cabello, Venezuela, Sunday, Dec. 21, 2025. (AP Photo/Matias Delacroix)

President Donald Trump arrives on Air Force One at Palm Beach International Airport, Saturday, Dec. 20, 2025, in West Palm Beach, Fla. (AP Photo/Alex Brandon)

NEW YORK (AP) — Stocks closed higher on Wall Street at the start of what’s expected to be a relatively calm holiday week. The S&P 500 rose 0.6% Monday. The index is just below the all-time high it set earlier this month. The Dow Jones Industrial Average rose 0.5%, and the Nasdaq composite climbed 0.5%. Gold and silver touched records and oil prices jumped after the U.S. Coast Guard said it was pursuing another sanctioned oil tanker in the Caribbean. Uber and Lyft rose after announcing plans to bring robotaxi services to London next year. Treasury yields edged higher in the bond market.

THIS IS A BREAKING NEWS UPDATE. AP’s earlier story follows below.

NEW YORK (AP) — Stocks rose in afternoon trading on Wall Street Monday at the start of what’s expected to be a quiet holiday week.

The S&P 500 rose 0.6% and is just below the all-time high it set earlier this month. The Dow Jones Industrial Average rose 253 points, or 0.5%, as of 3:10 p.m. Eastern time. The Nasdaq composite climbed 0.5%.

The broader market eked out a slight gain last week in what has been a choppy month. Technology companies, especially those focused on artificial intelligence, have been the main force behind the market's oscillations. The direction of AI-related stocks will likely determine whether the market closes out December with gains or losses.

“If a Santa Claus rally does kick in this year, St. Nick’s gift bag will likely need to be full of positive tech sentiment,” wrote Chris Larkin, managing director of trading and investing at E-Trade from Morgan Stanley.

The gains on Monday were broad, with technology companies and banks leading the way. JPMorgan Chase rose 1.8% and Nvidia rose 1.3%.

Uber rose 2.5% and Lyft rose 2.3% after announcing plans to bring robotaxi services to London next year.

Paramount Skydance rose 3.6%. The company sweetened its hostile takeover bid for Warner Bros. Discovery with an “irrevocable personal guarantee” from Larry Ellison, the founder of Oracle and father of Paramount CEO David Ellison. He is putting up billions of dollars to back the deal as part of the latest move in Paramount's bidding war against Netflix.

Warner Bros. Discovery rose 3.5% and Netflix fell 1.3%.

Dominion Energy slipped 4.1% after the Trump administration said it is pausing leases for five large-scale offshore wind projects. They include Dominion's Coastal Virginia Offshore Wind project.

Gold and silver touched records and oil prices jumped after the U.S. Coast Guard said it was pursuing another sanctioned oil tanker in the Caribbean.

Gold prices rose 1.9%, and it is hovering around $4,460 per ounce, adding to their consistent gains throughout the year. Silver prices were up about 1.6%.

Crude oil prices in the U.S. rose 2.4% to $58.01 a barrel. Prices for Brent crude oil, the international standard, rose 2.6% to $62.07 a barrel.

Treasury yields edged higher in the bond market. The yield on the 10-year Treasury rose to 4.17% from 4.15% late Friday.

Asian markets rose, and European markets slipped.

Markets in the U.S. will close early on Wednesday for Christmas Eve and remain closed on Thursday for Christmas. The short week for trading includes several economic reports that could shed more light on the condition and direction of the U.S. economy.

On Tuesday, the government releases the first of three estimates on gross domestic product, a reflection of how the broader U.S. economy fared in the third quarter. On Wednesday, the Labor Department will release its weekly data on applications for jobless benefits, which stands as a proxy for U.S. layoffs.

The Conference Board offers up results from its December consumer confidence survey on Tuesday as well.

The upcoming reports follow a mix of updates last week that show inflation remains elevated and consumer confidence has diminished over the last year. Overall, the job market has been slowing and retail sales have weakened.

The ongoing and wide-ranging U.S. trade war has been hanging over consumers and businesses already squeezed and worried by higher prices. The mix of stubbornly high inflation and a weaker jobs market has also put the Federal Reserve in a more difficult policy position moving forward.

The Fed has cut its benchmark interest rate at its last three meetings, despite inflation that has remained stubbornly above its 2% target. Fed officials have grown increasingly concerned about the slowing job market, pushing them to trim rates. Cutting interest rates to bolster the economy because of a weak job market could fuel inflation, however.

Wall Street is mostly betting that the Fed will hold steady on interest rates at its meeting in January.

Elaine Kurtenbach and Matt Ott contributed to this story.

James Denaro works on the floor at the New York Stock Exchange in New York, Wednesday, Dec. 10, 2025. (AP Photo/Seth Wenig)

Trader Jonathan Mueller works on the floor of the New York Stock Exchange, Thursday, Dec. 11, 2025. (AP Photo/Richard Drew)

Trader William Lawrence works on the floor of the New York Stock Exchange, Thursday, Dec. 11, 2025. (AP Photo/Richard Drew)

A person looks at an electronic stock board showing Japan's Nikkei index at a securities firm Monday, Dec. 22, 2025, in Tokyo. (AP Photo/Eugene Hoshiko)

People stand in front of an electronic stock board showing Japan's Nikkei index at a securities firm Monday, Dec. 22, 2025, in Tokyo. (AP Photo/Eugene Hoshiko)

A person stands in front of an electronic stock board showing Japan's Nikkei index at a securities firm Monday, Dec. 22, 2025, in Tokyo. (AP Photo/Eugene Hoshiko)

A person walks in front of an electronic stock board showing Japan's Nikkei index at a securities firm Monday, Dec. 22, 2025, in Tokyo. (AP Photo/Eugene Hoshiko)