"Young People’s Lives Are Not Bargaining Chips... Immediately Halt Consideration of Deployment to the Strait of Hormuz"

【Financial News Ulsan = Reporter Choi Soo-sang】A press conference opposing the government’s consideration of deploying troops to the Strait of Hormuz was held in Ulsan.
The Ulsan Youth Committee of the Progressive Party held a press conference at the press center of the Ulsan Metropolitan Council on the 14th, urging the Lee Jae-myung administration to immediately halt its consideration of deployment to the Strait of Hormuz and declare that it would not deploy troops.
The Youth Committee said, "Young people’s lives are not bargaining chips that can be traded for the ROK-U.S. Alliance," and asked, "How can sending our young people to a war that has no direct connection to South Korea and exposing their lives to danger be considered the state’s responsibility?"
The committee argued that neither the ROK-U.S. Alliance nor economic interests can take precedence over young people’s lives.
It particularly stressed that the South Korean military must not become an accomplice in an aggressive war. The committee pointed out that troop deployment would violate the pacifist principles stipulated in South Korea’s Constitution and could make South Korea an accomplice in an aggressive war.
It therefore emphasized that South Korea should pursue diplomacy to create peace rather than deploy troops.
The committee stated that South Korea remains a divided country and that the moment the South Korean military participates in a war, the risk would grow that South Korea itself could be regarded as a party to the conflict. It added that the safety of not only deployed troops but also South Korean citizens, companies, and vessels living, operating, and traveling in the Middle East must be taken into consideration.
The Youth Committee said, "This is not an issue that ends with sending one warship and a few troops," and pointed out, "It is obvious that the United States will not stop with this deployment decision and will demand more. No one can guarantee how far-reaching the consequences of this deployment decision will be."
It further stressed, "What we need to do now is create jobs where young people can work, not send them to a battlefield."
Meanwhile, in the Ulsan area, the Ulsan Regional Headquarters of the Korean Confederation of Trade Unions, the Ulsan Regional Headquarters of the Korean Metal Workers’ Union, and the Ulsan Alliance for Independent Reunification and Peace, along with one-person protests and party speech events organized by the Ulsan branch of the Progressive Party, have recently held a series of press conferences opposing troop deployment.
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