Seven tankers, 14 voyages to Russia's far east

An analysis of port records and ship-tracking data found South Korea oil shipments to Russia totalling more than 176,000 tonnes of fuel, mostly diesel, loaded at several South Korean ports in July and August onto seven tankers that made 14 voyages to Russia's far east. Three of the seven vessels are under UK and EU sanctions. One took on cargo through a ship-to-ship transfer in South Korean waters, a method that can hide a cargo's origin and spare ships a port call.

It is unclear who owned or sold the fuel; South Korean port records do not show it. The owners and managers of the four tankers did not respond to requests for comment. The trade has emerged as Moscow scrambles for supplies during the war in Ukraine.

• •The Layla, the largest carrier, made two voyages from the south-eastern port of Ulsan to Vladivostok, leaving on 19 July and 10 August and carrying 57,000 tonnes of diesel in total. On the first trip it told South Korean authorities its destination was Vladivostok; on the second it said it was bound for Niigata in Japan.
• •The Russian-flagged Astoria, which is also under Australian sanctions, loaded nearly 11,000 tonnes of fuel at Ulsan on 1 August, declared Japan as its destination and then sailed to Vladivostok.
• •The Chongchon never berthed. It took on about 26,000 tonnes of fuel from the unsanctioned tanker Celeste I at an anchorage off the southern port of Yeosu in early August, declared Singapore as its destination and headed for Vladivostok.

Analyst: 'shocking' that sanctioned tankers loaded in South Korea

Isaac Levi, an analyst at the Finnish thinktank Centre for Research on Energy and Clean Air (CREA), called it shocking that tankers sanctioned by the EU loaded fuel in South Korean ports before carrying it to Russia. He said the trade undermines the sanctions regime and South Korea's support for Ukraine.

A buyer forced abroad by strikes on its refineries

Ukrainian drone strikes have severely disrupted Russia's refining capacity. The International Energy Agency says Russian refinery throughput fell in June to its lowest level in more than 20 years, and its figures show diesel output down nearly 30% on last year. Ukraine's military intelligence agency, the HUR, says Moscow has been forced to import fuel products to feed its war machine.

According to Kpler data analysed by CREA, Russia imported 368,000 tonnes of oil products by sea in August, more than seven times the previous month and the highest monthly total since the full-scale invasion of Ukraine. South Korea accounted for 112,000 tonnes, or 31%, second only to India. The data show the buyers included:

• •Rosneft, Russia's state-controlled oil company, which is under UK, US, EU and Australian sanctions
• •NNK, a Russian oil group whose owner, Eduard Khudainatov, and its company NNK-Oil are under UK sanctions

Seoul points to export controls as questions go unanswered

Seoul has sent Ukraine humanitarian aid, together with non-lethal military supplies - helmets, body armour and demining vehicles among them - and in 2023 it pledged $2.3bn in support, most of it as loans. It has ruled out sending weapons directly to Ukraine throughout the war, in line with its practice of not supplying lethal arms to countries at war.

The fuel trade does not appear to breach South Korean law, whose measures against Russia rely mainly on export controls on goods such as industrial machinery, electronics and vehicles. Loadings began to surge in July, just as the country's president, Lee Jae Myung, pledged $100m for Ukraine's reconstruction at a Nato summit in Turkey.

Relations with Kyiv have meanwhile come under strain over the transfer of two North Korean prisoners of war to South Korea, which Seoul says was meant to remain secret. Moscow has signalled an interest in restoring relations with South Korea, including trade ties.

Asked about the shipments, the two governments answered as follows:

• •South Korea's foreign ministry did not address the shipments or the sanctioned tankers, saying the government supports and takes part in international efforts to help end the war in Ukraine. It said it had expanded export controls on Russia under the Foreign Trade Act beyond strategic items to 1,402 non-strategic items with a high potential for diversion to military use, and is strictly enforcing them. The ministry said it continues to monitor the implementation of those controls and, where necessary, takes action under the relevant laws and regulations.
• •The UK Foreign Office did not answer questions about the UK-sanctioned tankers using South Korean ports, or say whether the shipments had been raised with Seoul. A spokesperson said the UK remains firmly committed to the effective monitoring of its sanctions and to working with international partners to increase economic pressure on Russia and cut the revenues funding its war against Ukraine.