Foreign Minister Cho Hyun gave an ambiguous response on April 17 regarding whether the United States has made formal or informal requests for South Korea to dispatch warships to the Strait of Hormuz.
"It could be called a request, or it might not be—that's the situation," Cho said during a plenary session of the National Assembly's Foreign Affairs and Unification Committee. "As for whether there have been discussions with the U.S. side about deployment itself, I find it quite difficult to answer at this time."
Cho was responding to questions from Rep. Kim Sang-wook of the Democratic Party of Korea.
"The situation is somewhat confusing, as reported in the media," Cho said. "We are closely communicating with the U.S. through various channels on current issues while monitoring President Donald Trump's social media posts regarding the Strait of Hormuz."
Earlier, Trump posted on Truth Social on April 14 urging international cooperation: "Hopefully, China, France, Japan, South Korea, the UK, and other countries that are affected will send their ships there."
Cho spoke by phone with U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio the previous day. Rubio reportedly emphasized the need for multinational cooperation to ensure security in the Strait of Hormuz. Some analysts interpret this as the U.S. formalizing Trump's social media message through diplomatic channels. The possibility of a de facto deployment request during the call has also been raised.
"There will be a G7 foreign ministers' meeting near Paris, France on March 25, and South Korea has been invited," Cho said. "If I attend, I expect to have a meeting with Secretary Rubio there."
