Ukraine criticizes South Korea over oil product supplies to Russia

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky [Getty Images]

Ukraine, already at odds with South Korea over the transfer of captured North Korean soldiers, has cited a foreign media report to criticize Seoul for supplying large volumes of petroleum products to Russia.

Vladyslav Vlasiuk, a sanctions adviser at the Ukrainian presidential office, cited a report in a Facebook post Tuesday (local time) saying South Korea's exports of diesel and other petroleum products to Russia stood "in stark contrast" to its stated sanctions policy toward Moscow, Yonhap said.

According to the report, British daily The Guardian said that, based on an analysis of port records and vessel-tracking data, seven oil tankers made 14 voyages between July and August, carrying more than 176,000 tons of petroleum products loaded at South Korean ports including Ulsan and Yeosu to Russia's Far East, including Vladivostok.

The Guardian said most of the petroleum products shipped to Russia were diesel — the fuel facing the most serious supply shortage in the Russian market due to Ukrainian strikes.

"The supplies coincided precisely with the moment when Ukraine's attacks on Russian oil refineries reduced refining capacity and caused fuel shortages in Russia," Vlasiuk said. "Imports from South Korea in effect helped offset the impact of Russia's loss of its own refining capacity."

The remarks underscored Ukraine's position that South Korea's petroleum exports to Russia ran counter to the broader effort to squeeze Russia's war finances — an effort Ukraine has pursued by intensifying strikes on Russian oil facilities.

Vlasiuk also posted a separate analysis on X, formerly Twitter, breaking down South Korea's Russia policy into "positive" and "negative" aspects.

On the positive side, he cited Seoul's expansion of comprehensive export controls on Russia and Belarus, as well as its sanctions on Russian vessels and entities involved in military cooperation with North Korea.

On the negative side, he said South Korea had not joined the Russian oil price cap mechanism, continued to purchase significant volumes of Russian coal and LNG, and had considered resuming imports of Russian crude oil and naphtha — on top of the petroleum supplies to Russia.

South Korea's Ministry of Foreign Affairs told The Guardian that it had expanded export controls under the Foreign Trade Act to cover not only strategic goods but also 1,402 non-strategic items that could be used for military purposes. "As a responsible member of the international community, we support and are actively participating in international efforts to end the war in Ukraine and bring about peaceful reconstruction," the ministry said.

Ukrainian authorities silent on repatriation of North Korean POWs

Meanwhile, Ukrainian authorities including President Volodymyr Zelensky have yet to comment on the repatriation of captured North Korean soldiers to South Korea.

In this regard, Foreign Minister Cho Hyun said in June that South Korea had received a message from Ukraine that included "words of apology."

At a national audit session of the National Assembly's Foreign Affairs and Unification Committee, Cho responded to a question from Democratic Party of Korea lawmaker Lee Ki-heon — who asked whether Ukraine had in fact offered no apology — by saying he could not say there had been none, Yonhap said.

Cho said he had been continuously exchanging messages with his Ukrainian counterpart, adding that the Ukrainian foreign minister "seems very embarrassed," and that he had received a message from him related to an apology.

"However, there is some gap between what we received and the level we had in mind, and we intend to take firm measures," Cho said.

Asked why he thought President Zelensky had publicly disclosed the prisoner transfer, Cho said he personally speculated it may have been because Zelensky "wanted to show at the UN that he had done the right thing as a leader of a liberal democratic country," adding that it was his "personal interpretation."

On lawmaker Lee's suggestion that South Korea's ambassador to Ukraine Park Hee-chang should be recalled, Cho said the government was "reviewing that option, among others."

yul@heraldcorp.com