North Korean authorities have ordered a sweeping crackdown on illegal fuel trading, targeting Russian imports diverted onto the black market. Officials framed the order around two goals: fulfilling this year’s second-half economic plan and tightening discipline among cadres.
Illegally circulated fuel is to be recovered in full and returned to state coffers and officials implicated in black market fuel sales face legal punishment and the confiscation of their assets. The measure has raised tension among cadres across the country.
A source in South Pyongan province told Daily NK on Friday about a new directive targeting official corruption. The provincial people’s committee received the instruction document on Aug. 27 from the Cabinet’s general affairs bureau. It sharply criticized officials’ chronic bribery and “non-socialist” behavior and ordered it rooted out.
According to the source, the directive followed an enlarged Political Bureau meeting of the ninth Central Committee held on Aug. 25. That meeting emphasized the responsibilities of economic guidance bodies, including the Cabinet, in carrying out the plan without disruption. The directive also called for a high-intensity campaign to overhaul official discipline. Authorities reportedly relayed the order to officials at provincial, city and county party committees, and it also went to department heads under local people’s committees and party cell secretaries.
The directive stressed that the Cabinet would no longer overlook local officials who demand bribes from North Korean people, saying such officials must also stop accumulating personal wealth through their posts. Among the problems cited, the illegal distribution of fuel brought in from Russia was described as the most serious, including liquefied gas, gasoline and diesel smuggled out of the state supply system.
“The issue raised was that strategic fuel supplies coming in from Russia are leaving the state distribution network under officials’ protection,” the source said. “They’re flowing into private homes and smugglers in Pyongyang and the provinces, where they’re being traded illegally at high prices.” The instruction, the source added, was to completely root this out by the end of this year.
The Cabinet has directed city and county people’s committees and public security agencies to form joint crackdown teams, which will track down fuel diverted from the state distribution network, recover it in full and return it to state coffers. Officials confirmed to have leaked or traded fuel on the black market face harsh legal punishment regardless of rank. An unusually severe measure, the confiscation of personal assets, is also on the table.
Surprise inspections spread tension across South Pyongan
Following the directive, public security agencies in South Pyongan province have launched unannounced inspections of fuel storage facilities. They are also targeting transport networks and individuals selling or storing fuel near markets in major cities, spreading tension across the province.
Officials are reportedly on edge in the wake of the directive. “Officials who did favors for people and accepted money or goods in return are expected to come under heavy scrutiny this time,” the source said. “Those who built up illicit wealth this way are being extremely careful about their conduct now.”
Some North Korean people are also voicing concern about the crackdown’s economic fallout, according to the source. “People say that thanks to oil coming in from Russia, vehicles are moving even in rural areas and jangmadang logistics are running smoothly,” the source said. “But since authorities are determined to recover all the fuel, people are worried the local economy and their livelihoods could take a major hit.”
Reporting from inside North Korea
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September 7, 2026 at 06:15AM
by DailyNK(North Korean Media)