South Korea to send anti-piracy troops to Strait of Hormuz

Seoul — South Korea will send its anti-piracy troops to the Strait of Hormuz to help protect its vessels passing through the strategic waterway, the Defense Ministry announced Tuesday.

The 300-strong Cheonghae Unit, which has been on an anti-piracy mission in the Gulf of Aden off Somalia since 2009, will broaden its mission areas into the Gulf of Oman and further to the Persian Gulf, the ministry said in a statement.

"In consideration of the current situation in the Middle East, the government has decided to temporarily expand the Cheonghae Unit's sphere of activity in order to guarantee safety of our people and the freedom of navigation of our vessels," the ministry said.

The US has long asked for South Korea to join the US-led campaign to ensure freedom of navigation in the Strait of Hormuz. The Cheonghae military unit will not join the US-led coalition, but conduct independent operations, the ministry said.

The South Korean government had delayed its decision to send units into the Middle East for fear of worsening ties with Iran, a longtime major crude supplier. Before US sanctions on Iran came into effect early last year, South Korea took about 12 million barrels a month of Iranian crude, which accounted for about 10% of the country's total imports.

"The defense ministry had consultations with the US, and also explained reasons for the (troop dispatch) decision to Iran through diplomatic channels," a ministry official said.

South Korea, one of the closest allies to the US in the Asia Pacific, has long been keen to abide by Washington's foreign policies. Seoul requires full US support and influence in its quest to completely denuclearize North Korea and improve diplomatic and economic ties with Pyongyang.

South Korea, the world's fifth-biggest crude importer, received 690.62 million barrels of crude through the Strait of Hormuz over January-November 2019, accounting for 70.3% of the country's total imports, according to the energy ministry. More than 38% of South Korea's LNG imports came from the Middle East during the first 11 months of 2019, it said.