S. Korea to expand export ban list against Russia, Belarus

South Korea will tighten export controls against Russia and Belarus by expanding its list of items subject to export restrictions, including machine tool parts and sensors, in response to Moscow's invasion of Ukraine, the industry ministry said Thursday.

According to the revision to the regulations on trading strategic items, South Korea added 243 more items that can potentially be used for military purposes to the list of items that are banned from shipping to Russia and Belarus, according to the Ministry of Trade, Industry and Energy.

The newly added items include metal cutting machines, machine tool components, parts for optical instruments, and sensors, it added.

The revision, set to come into force starting Monday, will raise the total number of items on the list to 1,402 from the current 1,159 items.

The ministry said it will make a case-by-case review of "exceptional cases" for shipments to the two nations.

The government also amended its regulation on administrative steps against violations of export controls on banned strategic items to toughen punishment for those who repeatedly or intentionally violate the export ban, which will take effect on Monday.

"The government will toughen the crackdown on unlicensed exports of strategic items and other illegal cases," the ministry said in a release. (Yonhap)