Iran warns South Korea that deploying forces to Strait of Hormuz would be act of war

A senior Iranian official has warned that any South Korean military deployment to the Strait of Hormuz would be considered direct participation in aggression and war against Iran.

Al Mayadeen, a Lebanon-based pro-Hezbollah outlet, reported Friday (local time) that an unnamed senior Iranian security and political official said in an interview that South Korea "must not yield to US pressure to cooperate in America's illegal military operations."

The official urged South Korea not to "sacrifice its interests and reputation for America's aggressive policies," adding that Seoul "must not overlook the fact that the root cause of instability in the Strait of Hormuz is the aggressive behavior of the United States and Israel."

The official then warned that "if South Korea takes any action against Iran in the Strait of Hormuz, Iran will consider it direct military aggression and participation in war against Iran."

Iran's Fars News Agency, citing Al Mayadeen, added that South Korea's presidential office had said no decision had yet been made on joining a war against Iran, but that the deployment of a "search and rescue unit" to the Strait of Hormuz remained a possibility.

A presidential office official said Friday that on the question of whether South Korea could consider an overseas deployment as a military contribution to the Strait of Hormuz, "we believe there is room to maneuver as long as it does not significantly undermine our readiness posture on the Korean Peninsula." The official added that "any meaningful contribution in Hormuz must take into account our Korean Peninsula readiness, and we are reviewing various options in that regard."

According to Al Jazeera, the United States has been pressing South Korea and other allies that have refused to join the war against Iran. Donald Trump said last month that South Korea's refusal to support the US in the Iran war was one of the reasons he canceled joint US-South Korea military exercises.

Meanwhile, South Korea had previously expanded the operational range of its Cheonghae Unit — then deployed in Somali waters — to waters near the Strait of Hormuz in late 2019, when the US requested assistance protecting oil tankers.