▲ This Jan. 2, 2026, file photo, provided by the Military Manpower Agency, shows its chief Hong So-young. (PHOTO NOT FOR SALE) (Yonhap)

military manpower agency-Hormuz Strait

40 personnel deployed to onboard ship reserve service in Hormuz Strait: military manpower agency

By Lee Minji

SEOUL, March 27 (Yonhap) -- Forty South Korean nationals who are serving as onboard ship reserve service members are currently aboard ships in the Strait of Hormuz, the chief of the military manpower agency said Friday, vowing to closely monitor their safety amid the Middle East conflict.

The onboard ship reserve service refers to a form of alternative military service, which allows qualified mariners and engineers to serve aboard commercial vessels for three years instead of serving the usual 18-month mandatory service at military units.

"Forty (personnel) are aboard 17 ships in the Strait of Hormuz and continue to work there, without requesting to leave their respective ships," Hong So-young, chief of the Military Manpower Administration (MMA), told reporters when asked about the impact of the Middle East crisis on the military manpower policy.

"We are monitoring the situation on a daily basis, alongside the oceans ministry and an industry organization, and paying close attention to their safety and necessities," Hong said.

Separately, she said around 27 people, obliged to serve their mandatory military service, who had received short-term travel permits to visit the affected Middle East area in late February have all returned home safely.

Hong, who was appointed as the MMA's first female chief in July last year, said the agency is striving to establish fairness throughout the process of mandatory military service, as well as adjust to demographic changes that are expected to lead to a decline in military manpower resources.

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