“In communication with Iran over expanding the Cheonghae Unit’s mission” ... Foreign Ministry in talks with Iran, which opposes the expansion

[Financial News] The Ministry of Foreign Affairs said on the 10th that it is in communication with the Iranian government, which opposes expanding the Cheonghae Unit’s mission to an area within 650 km of the Strait of Hormuz. 
At a regular briefing that day, Foreign Ministry spokesperson Park Du-sun said, “The government is proceeding with a motion seeking consent to extend the deployment and strengthen the Cheonghae Unit’s mission, under the principles of non-involvement and non-intervention in the war, with the aim of protecting our citizens and safeguarding our economic interests.” He added, “We are in continuous communication with Iran and other countries concerned.”
The government is proceeding with plans to expand the Cheonghae Unit’s area of operations from its existing waters in the Gulf of Aden off Somalia to waters south of Oman, closer to the Strait of Hormuz, and to deploy additional assets to the unit, including maritime patrol aircraft, an explosive ordnance disposal team and minesweeping equipment.
Earlier, at a regular briefing on the 9th (local time), Esmail Baghaei, spokesperson for Iran’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs, was asked about expanding the operational area of South Korea’s Cheonghae Unit. He warned, “South Korea should refrain from deploying military forces in the region under the pretext of supporting the reopening of the Strait of Hormuz,” adding, “It should avoid getting involved in a situation that is already sufficiently complex.”
Baghaei said South Korea and Iran had maintained friendly relations for at least 60 years, but added pointedly, “I hope South Korea will not be seen as complicit in military aggression by aligning itself with the United States and others.”
Meanwhile, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs said that day it was considering additional response measures, including independent sanctions related to North Korea’s illicit cyber activities. This differs from the Ministry of Unification’s previous statement that it was not considering independent sanctions over North Korea’s hacking of cryptocurrency worth around 8.4 trillion won from Binance.
Spokesperson Park said, “We view North Korea’s cyber activities not only as a major source of funding for its nuclear and missile programs, but also as a threat to the global digital economy.” He added, “We have pursued a range of efforts, including operating South Korea-U.S. and South Korea-U.S.-Japan working groups, international cooperation and raising awareness in the private sector. We will continue to work closely with the international community to address North Korea’s cyber threats.” The Ministry of Foreign Affairs said, however, that sanctions targeting North Korea’s cyber activities had not been finalized.


[email protected] Kim Kyung-soo Reporter