Fuel shipments totaling more than 176,000 tonnes departed South Korean ports bound for Russia during July and August, according to analysis of port records and vessel tracking data. The cargo, primarily diesel, was loaded onto seven tankers that completed 14 voyages to Russia’s eastern regions. Three of the vessels involved were subject to sanctions imposed by the UK and EU, while one tanker acquired its cargo through a ship-to-ship transfer in South Korean territorial waters, a method that can obscure cargo origins and allow ships to avoid port terminals.
Energy analysts noted the shipments undermine both international sanctions regimes and South Korea’s publicly stated alignment with Ukraine. The country has provided humanitarian assistance and non-lethal military equipment to Kyiv, along with pledging financial support in 2023. However, South Korea has maintained a policy against supplying weapons to countries engaged in armed conflict and has sought to balance Ukraine support with efforts to improve relations with Russia. The fuel transfers do not appear to violate South Korean law, which focuses export controls on industrial machinery, electronics, and vehicles rather than fuel products.
The shipments coincided with a period of increased Russian fuel demand, as Ukrainian military operations have significantly degraded Russia’s domestic refining capacity. Refineries operated at their lowest throughput in over two decades in June, with diesel output declining nearly 30 percent compared to the previous year. Maritime data indicated that state-controlled Russian entities, including sanctioned companies, received portions of the South Korean fuel shipments in August, when Russia’s seaborne oil product imports reached their highest monthly total since the full-scale invasion began.
South Korean government officials declined to address the specific shipments or the involvement of sanctioned tankers when contacted. The foreign ministry stated that the country supports international efforts to end the conflict and has expanded export controls to include over 1,400 non-strategic items deemed to have military diversion potential. The UK Foreign Office similarly did not respond to inquiries regarding the use of sanctioned tankers at South Korean ports or whether the matter had been raised diplomatically with Seoul.
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