Defense chief says no official request yet from Washington for troop dispatch to Middle East

▲ Defense Minister Ahn Gyu-back responds to lawmakers' questions during a plenary session of the National Assembly in Seoul on March 24, 2026. (Yonhap)

defense chief-Middle East

Defense chief says no official request yet from Washington for troop dispatch to Middle East

SEOUL, March 24 (Yonhap) -- Seoul has yet to receive a formal request from Washington regarding troop deployment to the Middle East, though the two countries' military authorities remain in close consultation, the defense minister said Tuesday.

"We haven't received any letter in an official capacity from the U.S. side yet, but we are closely coordinating and consulting under the table on various scenarios," Ahn said during a parliamentary session, when asked if there were any changes to the government's position on the dispatching of troops to the Middle East.

U.S. President Donald Trump had called on U.S. allies, including South Korea, and other countries affected by Iran's attempt to close the Strait of Hormuz, to "hopefully" send ships to keep the strait "open and safe," in a posting on his Truth Social account on March 14.

South Korea currently operates the Cheonghae naval unit in the Gulf of Aden for anti-piracy operations, with the 4,400-ton class ROKS Dae Jo Yeong destroyer and some 260 personnel deployed.

The defense ministry has claimed that the unit was unprepared for conducting missions in the Strait of Hormuz, and the deployment of troops to the narrow waterway would require parliamentary approval.

Several U.S. allies, including Germany, Spain and Italy, as well as the North Atlantic Treaty Organization alliance, have rejected Trump's calls to send warships to the strait, where Iran is believed to have laid mines to prevent ships from passing.

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