President Lee Jae Myung promised on Saturday that South Korean fuel prices would remain stable even as the global oil shock worsened. His meetings this week with all five Central Asian leaders highlight Seoul’s efforts to turn six months of emergency oil procurement into a more durable energy security strategy before competition for alternative supplies and attacks on replacement routes make diversification harder.

In a Sept. 12 social media post, Lee said the share of South Korean crude imports coming from the Middle East had fallen from around 70% to the 50% range within several months, while Seoul was