U.S. President Donald Trump expressed frustration with South Korea for not yet responding to a request to deploy forces to the Strait of Hormuz.
At an Easter luncheon held at the White House on Tuesday, Trump argued that the Strait of Hormuz issue is not America's problem, saying, "Let Europe do it, let South Korea do it." He added that South Korea "has not been helpful to us," despite "us having 45,000 soldiers in a tough place, right next to nuclear power." The figure, however, is inaccurate — the actual number of U.S. troops stationed in South Korea is approximately 28,500.
"Let Japan do it. They get 90% of their oil from the strait. Let China do it," Trump added.
Trump has recently argued that the Strait of Hormuz should be left to the Middle East, Europe and China to handle, claiming that nearly all four war objectives have been achieved: ▲ destroying Iran's ballistic missile arsenal and production capabilities, ▲ decimating its navy, ▲ cutting off support for terror-sponsoring forces, and ▲ blocking nuclear weapons capabilities. In previous remarks, he had not specifically singled out South Korea, but did so this time.
The event was closed to the press. However, the White House posted a video of Trump's full remarks, including the comments about South Korea, on its YouTube channel and later deleted it, according to reports.