South Korean oil tanker searched by customs agents on suspicions of violating UN sanctions

A South Korean ship suspected of violating UN sanctions against North Korea is detained at the port of Busan.

Customs agents fail to find anything unusual as hold is placed on additional investigations

South Korean-registered oil tanker Lunis, which the US government recently flagged as being suspected of involvement in illegal ship-to-ship transfers with North Korean ships, was searched after entering a South Korean port on Apr. 3.

“On the morning of Apr. 3, the Lunis was searched by customs agents after entering the port of Yeosu on the morning of Apr. 3, but nothing unusual was discovered. The Korea Customs Service and the Korea Coast Guard haven’t decided whether or not to carry out additional investigations,” said a diplomatic source.

The Lunis was included on a list of suspicious ships in a warning about illegal ship-to-ship transfers with North Korea published on Mar. 21 by the US Treasury Department’s Office of Foreign Assets Control. However, the US has reportedly not asked South Korea to take any additional measures in connection with the Lunis.

The VOA website

On Wednesday, the Voice of America (VOA) reported that the Lunis had a dubious record of port calls over the past year. On several occasions, it would stay on the open sea and then return to its original port without making any calls.

Citing data available on MarineTraffic, a private-sector website that tracks the location of vessels, the VOA said records showed that the Lunis had lingered several times in areas that have seen a spate of illegal ship-to-ship transfers with North Korean vessels. For example, the Lunis departed from the South Korean port of Yeocheon on Apr. 11, 2018, and headed the next day to a position in international waters in the East China Sea about 200km off the coast of Shanghai, where it remained for about two weeks.

The company that owns the 6,500-ton oil tanker says that the authorities notified it after an investigation in September and October 2018 that it was not facing any charges.

In related news, South Korea’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs is reportedly in consultation with the US about what to do with another ship flying the South Korean flag that has been detained at the port of Busan since October 2018 while being investigated by authorities on charges of violating UN Security Council sanctions by delivering refined oil products to North Korea through a ship-to-ship transfer in international waters.

By Park Min-hee, staff reporter

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