[정치]The Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Iran’s Ambassador Chochi “released the detainment as soon as possible”…Qinghai troops also performed mission

[앵커]

On the 4th of local time, a Korean national petrochemical product carrier was captured by the Iranian Revolutionary Guard.

Captured in the Strait of Hormuz and transported to a nearby Iranian port.

20 sailors were also detained, including five Koreans including the captain.

The Iranian side has come up with environmental pollution issues.

Our captured ship is being suspected of polluting the marine environment.

The prehistoric side is jumping.

It seems that there was no environmental pollution, and the territory of Iran has not been invaded.

The real reason our ship was captured and detained is the reason for the observation that it will be separate.

In particular, it is worth noting that the capture site is the Strait of Hormuz, which accounts for 1/3 of the world’s maritime crude oil transport.

This is because Iran threatened to blockade the region whenever tensions increased with Western countries such as the United States.

They used the strategic points of the Middle East as a means of pressure against the US or the West.

After the US withdrew from the Iranian nuclear agreement in 2018, the conflict between the US and Iran has deepened.

To ensure that crews and ships are released safely as early as possible, it is necessary to properly grasp Iran’s true intentions targeting the US ally, our country, ahead of the inauguration of the Biden administration.

Then, we will connect reporters and find out what the government is doing.

The Ministry of Foreign Affairs called the Iranian ambassador to Korea to express regret for the capture of our ship by the Iranian Revolutionary Guards and urged the immediate release.

In order to respond to the situation, Choi Young-ship, dispatched from the Cheonghae unit, also arrived near the Strait of Hormuz.

Connect with reporters. Reporter Kim Do-won!

Our top priority is the prompt release of our ship. Please tell us the response from the Ministry of Foreign Affairs.

[기자]

Yes, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs called the Iranian Ambassador to the Republic of Korea at around 1:20 a while ago.

The Ambassador Shavestari, who encountered the reporters, entered without answering any questions about the reason for the arrest and the relevance of the Iranian funds frozen in Korea.

It is believed that Ko Gyeong-seok, director of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, and Middle East, expressed regret for the detention of the ship to Ambassador Shavestari and demanded that the ship be released immediately.

Earlier, Foreign Minister Kang Kyung-wha said he is working to get the arrest resolved as soon as possible.

He also explained that we are working to resolve the situation by checking the situation through the local mission and the Iranian embassy in Korea.

The government believes that there are no abnormalities in the lives of the sailors until now.

[앵커]

Iran’s explanation is that it was arrested for environmental pollution, but it is not easy to convince. How is it?

[기자]

Yes, an Iranian Foreign Ministry spokesman said the ship had contaminated the sea and was moved to shore by court order.

It is a purely technical issue, and it is argued that it is a normal action under the law.

However, it is not persuasive as it is believed that the waters of seizure are in the high seas rather than in Iranian territorial waters.

Therefore, there are observations that it is related to the KRW 7.6 trillion won in Iran, which was frozen by Korea due to the US sanctions on Iran.

This money is for Iran’s oil exports, which Iran has repeatedly demanded to lift the freeze.

Minister Kang Kyung-wha expressed a prudent attitude that it is not a situation to prematurely talk about this view, and that finding out the facts is first.

[앵커]

Choi Young-ham of the Cheonghae unit was dispatched to the Strait of Hormuz and is carrying out a mission?

[기자]

Yes, it is known that the Cheonghae unit arrived in the waters near the Strait of Hormuz around 3 a.m. at our time and started to perform the mission.

Choi Young-ham was dispatched near the Strait of Hormuz yesterday after receiving the situation that the Korean national ship, the Korea Chemi, was captured by Iran during an operation in the waters south of Muscat Port in Oman.

Choi plans to respond to the situation in close cooperation with the Combined Naval Command in Bahrain, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and the Ministry of Maritime Affairs and Fisheries.

On average, about 6 Korean merchant ships sail through the Strait of Hormuz a day, and it is known that the Cheonghae Unit was in charge of safe navigation of these ships as well.

Inside and outside the military, it seems that this issue is not basically a military issue.

In the end, it is paying attention to what solutions will be prepared while weighing in the possibility that the aftermath of the US-Iran conflict led to the capture of the Korean Chemie.

This is Dowon Kim, YTN from the Ministry of Foreign Affairs.