South Korea supplied Russia with significant volumes of fuel amid shortages caused by disruptions at Russian oil refineries. Some of the shipments were carried out by vessels under sanctions from the United Kingdom and the EU. The Guardian reported this, citing an analysis of port records and vessel-tracking data, UNN writes.
Details
In July and August, more than 176,000 tonnes of fuel, mostly diesel, were loaded at several South Korean ports onto seven tankers, which made 14 voyages to Russia’s Far East.
Three of these vessels were under sanctions. The largest of them, Layla, delivered diesel twice from the South Korean port of Ulsan to Vladivostok. In total, it transported 57,000 tonnes of fuel. During its second voyage, the vessel listed Niigata, Japan, as its destination, but ultimately headed to Russia.
Another sanctioned tanker, Astoria, flying the Russian flag and also subject to Australian sanctions, loaded nearly 11,000 tonnes of fuel in Ulsan on 1 August. It listed Japan as its destination, after which it headed to Vladivostok.
The third sanctioned tanker, Chongchon, did not enter the port. In early August, it carried out a ship-to-ship transfer of about 26,000 tonnes of fuel from the tanker Celeste I near the port of Yeosu, after which it headed to Vladivostok, listing Singapore as its destination.
Although sanctioned vessels took part in the shipments, this likely does not violate South Korean law. Seoul’s own sanctions against Russia mainly concern the export of industrial equipment, electronics and vehicles.
It was not possible to identify the owners or sellers of the fuel, as the relevant data is not available in South Korean port registers. The owners and operators of the other four tankers could not be reached.
According to the maritime analytics company Kpler, the fuel buyers included Rosneft — a Russian state-owned oil company under sanctions from the United Kingdom, the United States, the EU and Australia — and the Russian oil group NNK. Its owner, Eduard Khudainatov, and the company NNK-Oil are also under UK sanctions.
Russia’s oil-refining industry suffered serious disruptions due to Ukrainian drone strikes. According to the International Energy Agency, in June the throughput capacity of Russian oil refineries fell to its lowest level in more than 20 years, while diesel fuel production declined by nearly 30% year on year.
At the same time, throughout the Russian-Ukrainian war, South Korea has tried to balance supporting Ukraine with its desire to improve relations with Russia. Seoul ruled out direct arms supplies to Ukraine, adhering to a policy of not supplying lethal weapons to countries at war. At the same time, South Korea provided Ukraine with humanitarian aid and non-lethal military equipment, including helmets, body armor and demining vehicles, and in 2023 pledged $2.3 billion in support, primarily in the form of loans.
The volume of oil shipments from South Korean ports began to rise sharply in July, when the country’s President Lee Jae-myung promised at the NATO summit in Türkiye to allocate $100 million for Ukraine’s reconstruction.
In response to a request, South Korea’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs did not comment on the shipments or the sanctioned tankers. In a statement, the ministry said that, as a "responsible member of the international community," the government supports and actively participates in international efforts to end the war in Ukraine and peacefully rebuild the country.