A South Korean container ship returned to Busan on Sunday, completing the country's first commercial round trip to Europe by way of the Arctic. The PanStar Acro docked at about 8:24 a.m. local time, 50 days after it set sail on Aug. 22, Chosunbiz reported, citing South Korea's oceans ministry.

The ship sailed along Russia's Arctic coast to reach Felixstowe in Britain on Sept. 12, then called at Rotterdam and Gdansk, Poland, before heading home across the Arctic again. Each one-way leg took about 22 days, compared with 30 to 34 days through the Suez Canal, Chosunbiz reported. Officials say the route could cut travel times by about a third, Reuters reported.

The trip was not all smooth. The ship got home six days later than planned. Before it left, its operator, PanStar, told Reuters it hoped to carry about 1,300 containers' worth of cargo. It left with 737 twenty-foot units of cargo, plus empty boxes, Reuters and Chosunbiz reported. Seoul Economic Daily put the load at 837 units, and it is not clear whether that count includes empties.

The route also carries political risk. It runs along Russia's coast, and Seoul talked with Moscow about the trip, including whether the ship might need help if it got stuck in ice, Reuters reported. That could cause friction with Western allies trying to keep Russia isolated over its war in Ukraine.

Melting sea ice has opened the Arctic route in recent years. Interest has grown as fighting in the Middle East and the blockade of the Strait of Hormuz have disrupted shipping. A Korean company first used the route in 2013, but that ship was a tanker, not a container ship, Seoul Economic Daily reported.

President Lee Jae Myung has made Arctic shipping a priority. The government wants regular service by 2030 and bigger container ships on the route by 2035. Experts say success will depend on reliable schedules, slower sailing in ice, special insurance and extra fuel costs. A welcome event is set for Busan on Tuesday.

What we know: The PanStar Acro finished a 50-day Arctic round trip to Europe, with one-way legs much shorter than the Suez route.
What we don't: Whether the route can pay off for regular service, and exactly how much cargo the ship carried out.