South Korea threatens legal action over alleged fuel shipments to Russia

South Korea is ready to take legal action regarding alleged fuel shipments to Russia. This pledge comes as tensions rise between Seoul and Kyiv over reports from Ukraine about diesel and jet fuel exports. The Ministry of Foreign Affairs stated on Thursday that the government will move forward with legal steps only if claims made by an adviser to Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy are proven true. Officials clarified they have not yet confirmed whether South Korean fuel actually reached Russia through sanctioned tankers in July and August.

The volume in question reportedly stands at 176,000 tonnes. Vladyslav Vlasiuk, the sanctions policy adviser who made these claims, says the findings contradict Seoul's own rules. Ukraine's top sanctions official insists these allegations clash with South Korea's stated position against Russia since the invasion began. "Since Russia's invasion of Ukraine, our government has consistently implemented sanctions and export controls against Russia in close cooperation with the international community," Kang Yu-jung, a spokesperson for the presidential office, told Yonhap news agency on Wednesday. She added that Kyiv must stop making public remarks without checking facts first, noting such actions could harm global trust.

Some products like commercial diesel are not listed on South Korea's export control list for Russia. Yet the diplomatic friction is already boiling over other issues. Seoul has demanded an apology from Ukraine after Zelenskyy told the United Nations General Assembly that Kyiv transferred two North Korean prisoners of war to South Korea. The president claims this disclosure broke a non-disclosure agreement, while Kyiv denies any such deal ever existed. This row adds fuel to existing strains between the allies.

Meanwhile, ties between Pyongyang and Moscow remain deep. The two nations signed a mutual defence treaty in 2024. Estimates from both Ukraine and South Korea suggest around 14,000 to 15,000 North Korean soldiers have joined Russia's war effort against Ukraine. It is also worth remembering that North Korea and South Korea are still technically at war. The conflict ended with an armistice in 1953, not a peace treaty.