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Bloomberg
Efforts to secure safe passage through the Strait of Hormuz are ramping up as the UK said a second warship arrived in the area and South Korea may deploy its own unit as part of a multinational force.
Tensions have flared in the strait in recent weeks as Iran pushes back against US sanctions that are crippling its oil exports. Iran’s Revolutionary Guard is still holding a UK vessel it detained earlier this month, the Stena Impero, in retaliation for British forces seizing an Iranian tanker near Gibraltar for allegedly violating sanctions against Syria.
The UK has deployed the HMS Duncan, one of its Type 45 destroyers, to shepherd British-flagged ships through the strait, the Ministry of Defence said in a statement. It will operate alongside the Royal Navy’s HMS Montrose Type 23 frigate until late August, it said.
Meanwhile, South Korea is considering sending its Cheonghae naval unit to the strait for participation in a US-led coalition, Maeil Business Newspaper reported on Monday, citing an unidentified government official.
The strait is a vital thoroughfare for the energy industry, accounting for about a third of the world’s oil and a quarter of the gas transported by tanker.
The US and Europe are both seeking to establish separate maritime security initiatives, and the UK said that further measures would be taken to respond to Iran, without giving detail on those plans.
“Freedom of navigation in the Strait of Hormuz is vital not just to the UK, but also our international partners and allies,†Defense Secretary Ben Wallace said in the statement. “Merchant ships must be free to travel lawfully and trade safely, anywhere in the world.â€
South Korea’s 302-personnel Cheonghae unit includes the destroyer Dae Jo-yeong, an anti-submarine helicopter and three speed boats, according to the latest annual defense white paper. It’s been stationed in the Gulf of Aden since 2009 for anti-piracy operations and has also been utilised in recent years to help evacuate South Korea citizens from Libya and Yemen.
The unit’s key missions are to protect vessels, support safe passage and participate in maritime security operations, according to the white paper.
A defense ministry spokeswoman, Choi Hyun-soo, said the government is considering “various options to ensure South Korean vessels’ safety” but nothing has been finalized.
Separately, Oman, which shares the waterway with Iran, said it was in talks with “all parties†to restore stability to the waterway.
The UK and Iran have made efforts to resolve the situation.