South Korea is backing Ukraine, but its fuel tankers are sailing in the opposite direction — towards Russia.In July and August, more than 176,000 tonnes of fuel, mainly diesel, was shipped from South Korea to Russia as Moscow turned to imports to make up for falling domestic fuel production.The fuel was loaded at several South Korean ports and carried to Russia’s far east in 14 voyages by seven tankers, according to an analysis of port records and ship-tracking data by The Guardian. Three of the vessels were under UK and European Union sanctions.One sanctioned tanker received about 26,000 tonnes of fuel from another vessel in a ship-to-ship transfer in South Korean waters. Such transfers can make cargo origins harder to trace and allow ships to avoid port terminals.
Three sanctioned tankers sail to Russia
The largest carrier was the sanctioned Layla, which made two trips from Ulsan in south-eastern South Korea to Vladivostok on 19 July and 10 August, carrying 57,000 tonnes of diesel in total.On its first trip, Layla told South Korean authorities it was heading to Vladivostok. On the second, it declared Niigata in Japan as its destination before sailing to Vladivostok.The Russian-flagged Astoria, also under Australian sanctions, loaded nearly 11,000 tonnes of fuel at Ulsan on 1 August. It declared Japan as its destination before sailing to Vladivostok.The third sanctioned tanker, Chongchon, did not berth at a port. Instead, it took on about 26,000 tonnes of fuel from the unsanctioned Celeste I at an anchorage off Yeosu in southern South Korea in early August. It then sailed to Vladivostok after declaring Singapore as its destination.The owners and managers of the four tankers did not respond to requests for comment. South Korean port records do not show who owned or sold the fuel.
Russia turns to import fuel
The shipments come as Ukrainian drone strikes disrupt Russia’s oil-refining capacity.The International Energy Agency said Russian refinery throughput fell in June to its lowest level in more than 20 years. Diesel production was nearly 30% lower than a year earlier.Ukraine’s military intelligence agency, the HUR, has said Moscow has been forced to import fuel products to feed the “Russian war machine”.Russia imported 368,000 tonnes of oil products by sea in August, according to Kpler data analysed by CREA. That was more than seven times the previous month and the highest monthly total since the full-scale invasion of Ukraine.South Korea supplied 112,000 tonnes, or 31%, of the total, second only to India.Kpler data showed that buyers included Rosneft, Russia’s state-controlled oil company, which is under UK, US, EU and Australian sanctions. NNK, a Russian oil group, was also among the buyers. Its owner, Eduard Khudainatov, and NNK-Oil are under UK sanctions.South Korea balances Ukraine support with Russia tiesThe fuel trade comes despite South Korea’s support for Ukraine. Seoul has provided humanitarian aid and non-lethal military supplies, including helmets, body armour and demining vehicles. In 2023, it pledged $2.3bn in support, most of it in loans.President Lee Jae Myung also pledged $100m for Ukraine’s reconstruction at a Nato summit in Turkey.But Seoul has also sought to maintain ties with Russia. Throughout the war, it has ruled out sending weapons directly to Ukraine, in line with its policy of not supplying lethal arms to countries at war.Moscow has also shown interest in restoring relations with South Korea, including trade ties.The fuel shipments involve vessels sanctioned by some of South Korea’s western partners but do not appear to breach South Korean law. Seoul’s measures against Russia mainly focus on export controls covering goods such as industrial machinery, electronics and vehicles.The shipments come as relations between Seoul and Kyiv face strain over the transfer of two North Korean prisoners of war to South Korea, which Seoul has said was meant to remain secret.Seoul defends its export controlsFuel loadings at South Korean ports began to rise sharply in July, around the time Lee pledged $100m for Ukraine’s reconstruction.A 2025 trade association survey found that nearly 80% of South Korean companies that had stopped exporting to Russia since the war began were open to restarting trade.In March, South Korea capped exports of certain fuels and imported Russian naphtha under a US sanctions waiver after the war with Iran shut the Strait of Hormuz.On 1 October, the UK temporarily exempted South Korea’s existing gas contracts from a ban on maritime services for Russian LNG, which will take effect in January 2027.South Korea’s foreign ministry did not directly address 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.”The ministry said that 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 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.
