Lee Rules Out Troop Deployment to Hormuz Despite Trump Pressure

President Lee Jae-myung said South Korea would not deploy troops or military assets to participate in the Middle East conflict, reiterating three times that "there will be no deployment involving participation or intervention in the war" and that the principle of non-deployment "remains unchanged." The statement came under sustained pressure from U.S. President Donald Trump, who had criticized Seoul over its reluctance to help secure the Strait of Hormuz amid Washington's confrontation with Iran. Lee said Seoul was instead weighing minimal protective measures for its own commercial shipping and crude-oil imports and for the safety of Korean nationals in the region, and separately said US-North Korea talks remained possible. A recent Gallup Korea poll had found 55% of South Koreans opposed to any Hormuz deployment.