South Korea probes 176,000 metric tons fuel shipments to Russia
South Korea is investigating claims that more than 176,000 metric tons of mostly diesel fuel were shipped from its ports to Russia this summer, despite UK and E.U. sanctions.
The government says it will take legal action if any rules were broken, following a recent Guardian report that brought the issue to light.
Fuel shipments outside export controls
The fuel shipments aren't actually covered by South Korea's current export controls, which mainly target industrial machinery, electronics and vehicles.
Officials are now checking whether the fuel was really made in South Korea, since records don't clearly show who owned or sold the fuel.
Ukraine has raised concerns about these shipments too, so South Korea is talking with them through official channels to clear things up and keep international trust intact.