Fuel is being shipped from South Korea to Russia on sanctioned tankers as Moscow urgently seeks supplies during the war in Ukraine—a move one expert said “undermines” Seoul’s public support for Kyiv. Guardian analysis of port records and ship-tracking data found that in July and August, over 176,000 tonnes of fuel, mostly diesel, was loaded at several South Korean ports onto seven tankers that made 14 voyages to Russia’s far east. Three of the vessels were under UK and EU sanctions, and one received its cargo through a ship-to-ship transfer in South Korean waters—a method that can hide where a cargo came from and lets ships avoid docking at port terminals. “It is shocking that EU-sanctioned tankers loaded fuel at South Korean ports and carried it to Russia,” said Isaac Levi, an analyst at the Centre for Research on Energy and Clean Air (CREA), a Finnish thinktank. “This undermines the sanctions regime and South Korea’s support for Ukraine.” British armed forces intercept Russian shadow fleet oil tanker in ChannelRead moreSeoul has sent Ukraine humanitarian aid and non-lethal military supplies such as helmets, body armour and demining vehicles, and in 2023 pledged $2.3bn in support, most of it in loans. But South Korea has long sought to balance its support for Ukraine with its desire to improve ties with Russia. Throughout the war, Seoul has ruled out sending weapons directly to Ukraine, in line with its practice of not supplying lethal arms to countries at war. Moscow has signalled an interest in restoring relations with South Korea, including trade ties. While the fuel trade involves vessels sanctioned by some of Seoul’s western partners, it does not appear to breach South Korean law. South Korea’s own measures against Russia rely mainly on export controls on goods such as industrial machinery, electronics and vehicles. The shipments, however, risk making Seoul look like a weak link in western efforts to pressure Russia, as relations with Kyiv come under strain over the transfer of two North Korean prisoners of war to South Korea, which Seoul says was meant to remain secret. It is unclear who owned or sold the fuel, which South Korean port records do not show. The largest carrier, the sanctioned Layla, 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, but on the second it said it was bound for Niigata in Japan. Korea-Russia mapAnother sanctioned tanker, the Russian-flagged Astoria, which is also under Australian sanctions, loaded nearly 11,000 tonnes of fuel at Ulsan on 1 August, declaring Japan as its destination, before sailing to Vladivostok. Russia and North Korea open first road bridge across their shared borderRead moreThe third sanctioned tanker, the Chongchon, never berthed. It took on about 26,000 tonnes of fuel from an unsanctioned tanker, the Celeste I, at an anchorage off the southern South Korean port of Yeosu in early August, then headed to Vladivostok after declaring Singapore as its destination. The owners and managers of the four tankers did not respond to requests for comment. Russia’s capacity to refine oil has been severely disrupted by Ukrainian drone strikes. Its refinery throughput fell in June to its lowest level in more than 20 years, and diesel output is down nearly 30% on last year, according to the International Energy Agency. Ukraine’s military intelligence agency, the HUR, says Moscow has been forced to import fuel products to feed the “Russian war machine”. According to data from the maritime analytics firm Kpler, the buyers included Rosneft, Russia’s state-controlled oil company, which is under UK, US, EU and Australian sanctions, and NNK, a Russian oil group whose owner, Eduard Khudainatov, and one of its companies, NNK-Oil, are under UK sanctions. In August, Russia imported 368,000 tonnes of oil products by sea, more than seven times the previous month and the highest monthly tSince the full-scale invasion of Ukraine began, South Korea has supplied 112,000 tonnes, or 31%, of the total, according to Kpler data analysed by CREA — second only to India. Shipments from South Korean ports rose sharply in July, around the time President Lee Jae Myung pledged $100mn for Ukraine’s reconstruction at a Nato summit in Turkey. A 2025 trade association survey found that nearly 80% of South Korean firms that had stopped exporting to Russia since the war began were open to resuming trade. In March, when the war with Iran closed the Strait of Hormuz, South Korea capped exports of certain fuels and imported Russian naphtha under a US sanctions waiver. On 1 October, the UK temporarily exempted South Korea’s existing gas contracts from a ban on maritime services for Russian LNG due to take effect in January 2027. When contacted, South Korea’s foreign ministry did not comment on the shipments or the sanctioned tankers. In a statement, it said that as “a responsible member of the international community, the government supports, and is actively taking part in, international efforts to help end the war in Ukraine and bring about a peaceful recovery.” It said it had expanded its 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 was “strictly enforcing” them. The government “continues to monitor the implementation of its export controls on Russia and, where necessary, takes action in accordance with the relevant laws and regulations,” the ministry said. 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 our sanctions and to working with international partners to increase economic pressure on Russia and reduce the revenues funding its illegal war against Ukraine.”
Frequently Asked Questions
FAQs South Korea Shipping Fuel to Russia During the Ukraine War
Beginner Questions
1 What is this about
South Korea has been selling fuel productslike diesel and gasolineto Russia even while Russia is fighting a war in Ukraine This has caused controversy because many countries are trying to cut off money going to Russia
2 What kind of fuel are we talking about
Mainly refined petroleum products like diesel gasoline and naphtha These are made from crude oil and used for cars ships and industry
3 Why would South Korea sell fuel to Russia
Money Russia is a big market and South Korean refineries make a lot of fuel Selling to Russia brings in profit and keeps their factories busy
4 Is this illegal
Not exactly South Korea has joined many international sanctions against Russia but it hasnt banned all fuel exports So some sales are technically legalthough critics say they go against the spirit of the sanctions
5 Why is this a problem
Because fuel sales give Russia money to fund its war in Ukraine Countries like the US and EU are trying hard to choke off Russias energy income so any country still buying or selling fuel to Russia gets sideeye
Intermediate Questions
6 What sanctions has South Korea actually imposed on Russia
South Korea has banned exports of strategic items frozen assets of certain Russian banks and stopped some luxury goods But it hasnt imposed a full fuel embargo
7 How much fuel is South Korea sending
It varies In some months South Korea has been one of the larger suppliers of refined products to Russia though volumes dropped after pressure from the US and Europe
8 Are there any workarounds or loopholes being used
Yes Some fuel may go through third countries or be labeled as going somewhere else This makes it hard to track exactly how much ends up in Russia
9 What does the US think about this
The US has quietly and sometimes publicly pressured South Korea to stop Washington wants all allies to cut energy ties with Russia as much as possible
10 Has South Korea changed its policy
It has tightened things over timereducing some exports and increasing monitoring But it hasnt fully stopped partly because of economic interests and its own energy relationships
