The Presidential Office adopted a cautious stance after U.S. President Donald Trump singled out South Korea on Tuesday (local time), demanding its participation in an operation to break through the Strait of Hormuz. Trump claimed the fire aboard a Korean cargo ship in Hormuz was an Iranian attack, writing on his social network service (SNS) the same day, "I think it's time for South Korea to join this operation!" The "operation" Trump referred to is the "Liberation Project," aimed at extracting third-country vessels stranded in the Strait of Hormuz.
The Presidential Office remained reticent on Wednesday, saying, "We need time to determine at the very least whether (the incident) was an attack or not." It made clear that pinpointing the exact cause takes priority. The government is investigating the cause of the explosion and fire, led primarily by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and the Ministry of Oceans and Fisheries. As of now, the National Security Council (NSC) has not been separately convened, sources said.
So far, despite pressure from Trump to join the "Liberation Project," the Presidential Office appears to be calmly assessing the situation rather than responding immediately.
The Ministry of Foreign Affairs said an explosion and fire broke out at 8:40 p.m. Tuesday (Korea time) aboard the "HMM Namoo," a vessel operated by a Korean shipping company that had been anchored in waters near the United Arab Emirates (UAE) inside the Strait of Hormuz. The bulk carrier had 24 people on board, including six Korean nationals and 18 foreign crew members, and no casualties have been reported so far. The Presidential Office previously said, "We are looking into the cause of the fire on the vessel, and it has been confirmed that there are currently no injuries among the Korean crew."
