By Ruy A. Valdés
Seoul, Sep 9 (EFE).- South Korea faces a difficult decision over whether to deploy troops to the Strait of Hormuz, caught between pressure from the United States to contribute militarily and warnings from Iran that such involvement would carry “grave consequences.”
A recent visit by a South Korean inspection team to the Middle East suggests that President Lee Jae Myung’s administration is considering what role it could play in securing the strategic waterway, a crucial route for the country’s energy imports.
Trump’s pressure US President Donald Trump ordered a reduction in the bilateral Ulchi Freedom Shield (UFS) exercises with South Korea just hours before the annual drills were due to begin in mid-August.
Trump attributed the decision to his “good relationship” with North Korean leader Kim Jong Un, but also said South Korean President Lee had rejected a US request to support Washington’s “de-nuclearization” mission in Iran.
The US president has since continued to criticize Seoul for what he describes as its refusal to support Washington, despite the presence of around 28,500 US troops in South Korea.
Seoul has repeatedly stressed that it has not made a final decision on deploying troops to Hormuz.
However, a presidential official said last week that the government was studying the possibility as long as it “does not compromise its defense capabilities.”
The Defense Ministry confirmed the following day that it had sent an inspection team to the United Arab Emirates.
Iran’s warning
Iranian Foreign Ministry spokesman Esmaeil Baghaei warned Monday in a message in Korean on X that South Korean participation in military operations in Hormuz would have “grave consequences.”
Tehran, he said, would regard such involvement as direct support for the party responsible for the “aggression.”
The possibility of deploying South Korean military assets has raised concerns over whether such a mission could weaken the country’s readiness to respond to threats closer to home.
The calculation is further complicated by Iran’s ties with North Korea, at a time of heightened tensions between Seoul and Pyongyang and growing North Korean cooperation with Russia and China.
The potential risks to South Korean vessels in the region are not merely hypothetical.
In May, the South Korean-operated vessel HMM NAMU was struck by two projectiles that Seoul said were likely Iranian-developed anti-ship missiles.
Following the incident, South Korea reconsidered a US proposal to join an escort mission for vessels traveling through the Strait of Hormuz.
Energy dependence
South Korea obtains about 70 percent of its oil from the Middle East, and roughly 95 percent of those imports normally pass through the Strait of Hormuz.
“A serious disruption of shipping through Hormuz would not remain a distant geopolitical crisis. Its effects would reach Korean factories, transportation networks, energy prices, and ultimately Korean households,” retired Lt. Gen. Chun In-bum, a former head of US affairs at South Korea’s Defense Ministry, wrote Tuesday on LinkedIn.
Chun argued that any deployment should not be viewed simply as a response to a US request but as a measure to protect South Korea’s own national interests.
He nevertheless said Seoul should limit any mission to surveillance, escort, logistics, and defensive operations.
Parliament and public opinion
A troop deployment would in principle require parliamentary approval, adding another obstacle for the Lee administration.
Within the ruling Democratic Party, at least three lawmakers have recently expressed opposition or serious reservations about joining a US-led operation.
Public opinion could prove equally important. Around 100 people protested Wednesday in central Seoul against US pressure and called on the government to reject a deployment.
The demonstration was backed by more than 600 organizations belonging to the Joint Action Coalition Against the War of Aggression and Troop Deployment.
For Lee, the decision therefore involves more than responding to Washington.
It means balancing the country’s alliance with the United States, the security risks posed by Iran and North Korea, the protection of vital energy routes and the political costs of sending South Korean forces into another Middle Eastern conflict. EFE
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