South Korea said it will pursue legal action if it determines that fuel shipments from its ports to Russia violated domestic law, the government announced in response to a Guardian report documenting thousands of tonnes of fuel transported to Russia.
The foreign and trade ministries and the customs service issued a joint statement saying they are "checking additional information concerning the loading cases reported by the Guardian." The agencies said that "if the verification establishes that our laws and regulations have been violated, it plans to act in accordance with the law."
The statement came after the Guardian reported on fuel trade flowing from South Korean ports to Russia, a trade that occurs against the backdrop of sanctions tied to Russia's invasion of Ukraine. South Korea, a close US ally, has stated its opposition to the invasion but has not imposed its own sanctions on Russian energy imports.
The government's response indicates an active investigation into whether the reported shipments complied with South Korean regulations. The statement does not specify what laws or regulations may have been breached, nor does it detail the volume or scope of shipments under review.