Iran warns South Korea in hangul over possible troop deployment to Strait of Hormuz

Iran's Foreign Ministry has warned South Korea against sending troops to the Strait of Hormuz.

Iranian Foreign Ministry spokesperson Esmail Baghaei posted a message in hangul on X, formerly Twitter, on Monday (local time), saying that relations between Iran and South Korea "span more than 64 years of history" and have "consistently developed on the basis of mutual respect." He added that Iran "places great importance on its friendly relations with South Korea."

Baghaei said, however, that "the Iranian people are currently defending themselves against the United States' aggressive actions and are firmly responding to US war crimes committed against women and children."

He then warned that "any military presence or participation in operations by another country in the Persian Gulf and the Strait of Hormuz cannot but be regarded as direct support for the party committing acts of aggression, and will bring about serious consequences."

Baghaei also said that "no country with sovereignty and responsibility should yield to US pressure and intimidation and become complicit in acts of aggression and horrific crimes against the great Iranian people."

This is not the first time Iran has directed a warning at South Korea. Earlier, a senior Iranian security and political official told Al Mayadeen, a Lebanon-based pro-Hezbollah outlet, that any action by South Korea against Iran in the Strait of Hormuz would be considered direct participation in aggression and war.

Meanwhile, the South Korean government is reviewing a US request to deploy troops and assets to the Strait of Hormuz. Assets under consideration include the P-8A maritime patrol aircraft, an explosive ordnance disposal unit and the large logistics support ship ROKS Soyangham, an 11,000-ton vessel. Following Iran's pushback, the government is also weighing a scaled-down deployment that would exclude the logistics support ship.