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>At a full session of the National Assembly's Foreign Affairs and Unification Committee, Cho was pressed repeatedly about whether the United States had made an official deployment request. He said he was \"reluctant to answer\" and emphasized that saying he was reluctant did not mean there had been an official request. His comments indicated Seoul has not been handed detailed U.S. plans for allied warships in the Strait of Hormuz.
Earlier, on the evening of March 16, at Washington's request, Cho held a phone call with Secretary of State Marco Rubio to exchange views on recent developments in the Middle East and on U.S.-South Korea relations. According to the Foreign Ministry, Rubio used the call to brief Cho on the current situation and prospects in the region and to ask for Seoul's attention and support to help restore peace and stability. He also stressed the importance of securing long-term safety in the Strait of Hormuz and requested close communication.
When some in Seoul interpreted the calls as a formal U.S. request to dispatch warships, Cho took a cautious tone before the committee.
A Foreign Ministry official told reporters Cho's remarks were intended to underscore caution because the U.S. concept remains a work in progress. \"The U.S. plan has not been finalized,\" the official said. \"We will watch how it develops and consider our response as the concept becomes concrete.\"
Responding to suggestions that dispatching warships to the Strait of Hormuz could raise constitutional issues, Cho said all decisions would be made in accordance with the constitution and applicable laws, and that he would brief the relevant parliamentary standing committee in detail.
Defense Minister Ahn Gyu-baek also told the National Assembly's National Defense Committee he has received no official U.S. request to send warships. He said he does not view a message left by President Trump on social media as an official request and reiterated that deploying ships to the Strait of Hormuz would require parliamentary approval.
Cho added that the ministry has concrete plans to secure the safety of, evacuate, and resupply 26 vessels and 183 crewmembers currently stranded near the Strait of Hormuz. The Foreign Ministry said it has opened standing channels with nearby port authorities where Korean ships are located and can provide immediate assistance if ships require food or other supplies.
Meanwhile, Cho will visit France from March 25 to 27 at the invitation of the French government, which is chairing the first expanded G7 foreign ministers' meeting of 2026. He plans to use the G7 meeting to hold bilateral talks with major counterparts on practical cooperation and regional issues. If Secretary Rubio attends, Seoul is expected to pursue a Korea-U.S. or Korea-U.S.-Japan foreign ministers' meeting to discuss Iran-related concerns.
