“Russia fully and strictly observes the sanctions regime,” the ministry said in a statement on Saturday. It also stressed the UN resolution does not fully ban oil supplies but only caps them, while a special ministry committee observes the commitment to the sanctions regime.

Earlier, Reuters published an exclusive report citing unnamed “senior Western European security sources” that claim that Russian tankers re-supplied North Korean vessels with fuel on three occasions in violation of the UNSC measures.

On December 22, the fifteen members of the UN Security Council unanimously approved a new round of sanctions on North Korea, slashing its oil and petroleum imports, following its latest ballistic missile test launch on November 29. Pyongyang immediately condemned the move, calling it an “act of war,” and demanded repatriation of all North Koreans working abroad within 24 months.