South Korea to send envoy to Iran as Hormuz remains blocked

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SEOUL – South Korea will send a special envoy to Iran as Seoul ramps up efforts to secure safe passage for dozens of its ships that have been stranded in the Strait of Hormuz for weeks, with traffic through the key waterway still severely constrained despite the US-Iran ceasefire.

South Korea’s Foreign Minister Cho Hyun spoke to his Iranian counterpart, Mr Abbas Araghchi, on April 9 by phone and stressed the need for swift resumption of free navigation for all vessels in the crucial waterway, Mr Cho’s office said. It was their second phone call in three weeks.

“Minister Cho decided to dispatch a special envoy to Iran to discuss the situation in the Middle East and bilateral issues between South Korea and Iran,” South Korea’s Foreign Ministry said in a statement.

The envoy – Mr Chung Byung-ha, a former ambassador to Kuwait – will be sent “in the near future,” the ministry said on April 10, without giving further details on timing. Yonhap News said the official was already on his way to Iran, without citing sources.

“We plan to exchange views on the situation in the Middle East and consult on the safety of our citizens, vessels, and crew, as well as issues regarding the passage of all vessels, including our own, through this visit,” the ministry said in a statement.

The announcement comes after a 14-day truce took effect this week, with the US and Iran preparing for peace talks in Pakistan on April 11.

But the agreement, which the US said was conditional on Iran unblocking Hormuz, has yet to translate into a meaningful increase in shipping.

Just a handful of vessels were observed making the voyage out of the Persian Gulf this week. Under normal conditions, about 135 vessels traverse the strait every day. 

South Korea, which imports almost all of its energy needs, with some 70 per cent via the Strait of Hormuz, currently has 26 ships stranded in the area.

South Korea, a key US ally in Asia, has been trying to avoid getting dragged into the conflict in the Middle East, dodging US President Donald Trump’s call to help reopen the Strait of Hormuz.

Mr Trump has specifically criticised South Korea for not helping, even though Washington stations tens of thousands of troops on its soil to deter aggression from nuclear-armed North Korea.

South Korea has said it will not pursue a bilateral deal with Iran to ensure the safe passage of its ships, stressing that a coordinated response by the international community is necessary. 

The planned dispatch of envoy follows Japanese Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi’s phone call with Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian this week where Ms Takaichi called for a lasting peace agreement between Washington and Tehran. BLOOMBERG