Russia imported more than 176,000 tons of petroleum products from South Korean ports in July and August, easing the impact of the fuel crisis caused by Ukrainian drone strikes on Russian oil refineries, Ukraine’s top sanctions official said Tuesday.
Deliveries from South Korea accounted for 31% of Russian fuel imports in August, according to official Vladyslav Vlasiuk, citing reports that tankers, including those under Western sanctions, were used for deliveries.
“These shipments began precisely when Ukrainian strikes on Russian oil refineries reduced processed volumes and created a fuel shortage in Russia,” Vlasiuk, presidential commissioner for Ukraine sanctions policy, wrote on Facebook.
His comments come amid a diplomatic row between Seoul and kyiv that erupted last month when Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky announced the transfer of two North Korean prisoners of war to South Korea, a move that Seoul said was supposed to remain secret.
Ukraine this year used long-range drones to attack Russian refineries and oil depots in what kyiv described as an attempt to impose higher costs on its enemy, with no end in sight more than four years after Russia’s full-scale invasion.
The Ukrainian strikes forced Russia to halt exports while South Korea softened its impact.
The strikes prompted Russia to impose a ban on diesel and gasoline exports, while restricting fuel purchases in some regions hit hard by the fuel crisis.
“In fact, imports from South Korea helped Russia offset the impact of the loss of its own refining capacity,” Vlasiuk said, citing “available data” and “reports” as sources in his message.
Earlier Tuesday, the Tutor said it analyzed port records and ship tracking data, determining that the volumes were loaded at South Korean ports on seven tankers, some of which are subject to UK and EU sanctions.
Vlasiuk provided the same figures as those of the Tutor.
“This is in stark contrast to the sanctions policy adopted by South Korea after the start of the large-scale invasion,” Vlasiuk said.
Relations between South Korea and Ukraine under strain
In response to Tutor According to the South Korean Foreign Ministry, “the Korean government actively supports and participates in global efforts to end the war in Ukraine and achieve peaceful recovery.”
He said his government was strictly enforcing export controls against Russia by expanding the scope beyond strategic items to include “non-strategic items…that carry a high risk of diversion for military purposes.”
Relations between South Korea and Ukraine have been tense for weeks.
South Korean President Lee Jae Myung threatened Friday to take unspecified action against Ukraine unless kyiv recognizes a confidentiality agreement that Seoul said covered the transfer of two captured North Korean soldiers.
Seoul said it wanted an apology. Ukraine denies the existence of a confidentiality agreement, but its foreign minister has said kyiv wants to restore ties with South Korea.
Gn world
