Hormuz deployment would bring little justification and high risks, officials say

South Korea’s Defense Ministry has sent a fact-finding team to the Strait of Hormuz, raising fresh questions about whether Seoul is weighing a deployment there. The ministry said late on the 8th that “no decision has been made regarding a deployment,” while insisting the inspection was not conducted on the assumption that troops would be sent.

That explanation has done little to quiet speculation. Former and current foreign and security officials compare the proposal with South Korea’s past deployments to Vietnam and Iraq and say the case for Hormuz is weaker, while the dangers are greater. They warn that accepting repeated US requests could impose a substantial military and political burden on Seoul.

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No decision has been made regarding a deployment.

South Korea currently deploys troops through UN peacekeeping operations and multinational forces, giving those missions the stated justification of contributing to international efforts and maintaining the country’s international standing. The country has 466 personnel in UN missions, including the Dongmyeong unit in Lebanon and the Hanbit unit in South Sudan. Another 270 serve with multinational forces, including the Cheonghae unit off Somalia, while 141 troops serve in the United Arab Emirates under a defense cooperation mission.

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The way the United States is publicly pressuring South Korea to deploy to the Strait of Hormuz is very different from how it handled deployments to Vietnam in the late 1960s and Iraq in 2003.

The article argues that the US-Israel war with Iran is different. A UN peacekeeping or multinational force is unlikely to emerge because the conflict began unilaterally with the United States and Israel. Major US allies such as Britain and France have not readily accepted President Donald Trump’s request to send warships. Unlike the 2003 Iraq war, the conflict also lacks approval from the US Congress.

The risks for South Korea could be direct. Iran could regard reconnaissance or logistical support for US forces as participation in hostile action and could seek to block South Korean oil shipments through the strait. South Korea imports about 70% of its crude oil and roughly 20% of its liquefied natural gas from the Middle East. Korean residents and economic and military facilities in Saudi Arabia, Bahrain, Kuwait and Qatar could also face danger. A former official urged Seoul not to decide hastily, but to watch developments and coordinate with international contributions led by Britain and France.

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Do not rush into a deployment decision. It is necessary to watch the situation in the Middle East and keep pace with the international community’s contribution efforts led by Britain and France.