Leaked Russian Records Reveal Obscure Firms Helping Bust Oil Sanctions on North Korea

An investigative report outlines how Russian firms Inrostopt and Atlant Export sharply increased revenues while shipping large volumes of petroleum (including 85,000 barrels by Inrostopt and a total of 211,000 barrels across recipients) to North Korean entities by rail in 2024, channeling hundreds of millions of rubles through UAE intermediaries Amax General Trading and SGravity General Trading. Recipients included Ka The, Future Electronic Company (linked to KOMID), Okryu (sanctioned by the U.S. in Dec 2024), and the RasonConTrans joint venture, with some payments labeled “KORUS,” whose meaning remains unclear.