The British government has exempted South Korea's imports of Russian liquefied natural gas from its sanctions regime, according to a foreign news report.
Reuters reported on the 1st that the U.K. government issued a temporary authorization allowing British companies to take part in the shipment of LNG from Russia's Sakhalin-2 project to South Korea and Japan. The measure applies only to existing supply contracts and remains valid until March 31, 2028.
The U.K., moving in step with the European Union, plans to ban companies in its jurisdiction from providing shipping, insurance and other services for Russian LNG starting in January next year. The South Korean government had requested an exemption, arguing that the ban would disrupt Korea Gas Corporation's contracted LNG imports from the Sakhalin-2 project through March 2028.
The EU also granted South Korea and Japan an exemption for Russian LNG imports by writing a carve-out into its 21st package of sanctions against Russia, adopted in July.
The U.K. on the same day added 23 individuals and entities to its sanctions list over suspected involvement in the detention and torture of Ukrainian civilians, the forced deportation of Ukrainian children and the spread of disinformation. Eight vessels were also named, including three tankers and two bunkering ships belonging to the so-called shadow fleet that exports Russian oil in defiance of Western sanctions.
