South Korea has announced it will take legal action if it discovers that shipments of fuel from its ports to Russia have violated domestic laws. This statement comes in response to a report by The Guardian, which revealed that thousands of tonnes of fuel were transported to Russia.
Investigation Underway
The South Korean government, through its foreign and trade ministries and customs service, stated that it is currently investigating the loading cases highlighted by The Guardian. The government emphasized, "if the verification establishes that our laws and regulations have been violated, it plans to act in accordance with the law."
According to the report, over 176,000 tonnes of fuel, primarily diesel, were loaded at various South Korean ports onto seven tankers that made 14 voyages to Russia's far east during July and August. Notably, three of these tankers are under UK and EU sanctions.
Details of the Shipments
One tanker reportedly took on approximately 26,000 tonnes of fuel through a ship-to-ship transfer at an anchorage off the southern port of Yeosu. Isaac Levi, an analyst at the Centre for Research on Energy and Clean Air (CREA), remarked that this trade "undermines the sanctions regime and South Korea’s support for Ukraine."
The International Energy Agency has noted that Russia's capacity to refine oil has been significantly impacted by Ukrainian drone strikes, with refinery throughput in June dropping to its lowest level in over 20 years and diesel output down nearly 30% compared to last year.
