Cheonghae Unit to Expand Mission to Areas Near the Strait of Hormuz

The process of seeking National Assembly approval has begun to expand the Cheonghae Unit’s area of operations beyond the waters of the Gulf of Aden to nearby waters at least 650 kilometers from Iran’s Strait of Hormuz. This comes eight months after U.S. President Donald Trump asked countries in March to send warships to ensure safe navigation through the Strait of Hormuz.
According to the Defense Ministry on the 5th, a revised motion seeking approval to expand the Cheonghae Unit’s mission area and deploy additional assets will be submitted to the National Assembly. The extension of the unit’s deployment passed a vice-ministerial meeting that day and will be submitted to the National Assembly for approval after next week’s Cabinet meeting and presidential approval.
Under the existing deployment-extension motion, which remains in effect until the end of this year, the Cheonghae Unit’s area of operations is specified as “the waters around the Gulf of Aden and waters designated for operations to protect our citizens in the event of an emergency.” The area will be expanded to the open waters south of Oman, near the Strait of Hormuz. The Cheonghae Unit’s mission area will double in size.
The South Korean military will additionally deploy one P-8A Poseidon, the Navy’s latest maritime patrol aircraft, known as a “submarine killer,” as well as an explosive ordnance disposal (EOD) team to operate alongside unmanned underwater vehicles (UUVs), unmanned surface vehicles (USVs), remotely operated vehicles (ROVs) and other assets. The deployment will add 75 personnel, including command staff, 30 EOD personnel and 45 patrol aircraft operators, bringing the total to around 395. The P-8A patrol aircraft will be based in Djibouti, East Africa.
A Defense Ministry official stressed that the Cheonghae Unit’s expanded area of operations “is at least 650 kilometers from the Strait of Hormuz, even in a straight line,” adding, “We will carry out the mission on the principle that we will absolutely not become involved in or intervene in a war.”
However, progressive minor parties, including the Rebuilding Korea Party and the Progressive Party, criticized the move as a “backdoor deployment to the Strait of Hormuz.” The People Power Party has called it a “Hong Gil-dong deployment.” By contrast, the ruling Democratic Party of Korea defended the government’s plan, saying, “The Cheonghae Unit’s area of operations is being expanded to respond to a sharp increase in piracy in the Gulf of Aden.”
[email protected] Kim Kyung-soo, Choi Jong-geun Reporter