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| On the afternoon of the 5th, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs held an internal countermeasure meeting in relation to the Iranian detention of Korean ships and discussed future countermeasures. (Provided by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs) 2021.1.5/News 1 |
There is a feeling of embarrassment within the government as the Iranian Revolutionary Guards seize a Korean ship.
While our Choi Young ship and the US nuclear carrier Nimitz were dispatched to the Middle East, they are in the shape of maintaining a low key, taking into account the diplomatic impact on the Middle East and international affairs.
A government official said on the 5th, “The Cheonghae unit arrived in the waters near the Strait of Hormuz at the dawn of the Korean time and started to perform the mission.”
Choi Young-ship, the 33rd Jinhae of the Cheonghae Corps, was dispatched to the waters near Hormuz shortly after receiving the situation that the Korean national ship “Korea Chemi” was captured by Iran while operating in the waters south of Muscat Port in Oman the day before.
Choi Young, carrying more than 300 people including special warfare (UDT) and aviation troops, was dispatched to the 6th Jinhae of the Cheonghae unit in January 2011, and rescued the crew of Tenjin Korea in April of the same year as the Aden Bay Dawning operation, where our ship was captured by pirates during the first mission. It has been put into operation.
This is the first time, however, to respond to the situation of being captured by the state’s official military force, not by local armed groups or pirates.
However, while confirming the dispatch and arrival of Choi Young, the South Korean military authorities refused to respond to specific details such as what mission and operation to be performed.
It is interpreted as a move conscious of the impact that will have on the Middle East and international affairs, considering the fact that the arresting party is not a pirate but a regular soldier in Iran, and the fact that US-Iran military tension has risen in the Strait of Hormuz. The purpose is to maximize the diplomatic space with Iranian authorities while preparing for emergencies.
In fact, it is known that Choi Young-ham is currently paying close attention to the situation near the Strait of Hormuz.
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It seems that one of the factors was that the government was not able to hide its embarrassment in this situation, and that it was made while the first Vice Minister of Foreign Affairs Choi Jong-gun’s visit to Iran was being promoted. As originally scheduled, Vice Minister Choi plans to visit Iran for two nights and three days from the 10th to discuss the issue of ship detention. It seems to be to minimize the diplomatic impact of the situation.
Iranian authorities heard’marine pollution’ as a reason for detaining our ship. It is explained that the Iranian Maritime Administration identified the marine pollution activity of the Korean Chemie and filed a complaint, and judicial proceedings were initiated.
However, foreign media and diplomats continue to diagnose that the U.S.-Iran relationship, which was the worst in the Trump administration, is the key cause of the incident, and that the Korea Chemie has been ignited.
Some have interpreted it as a pressure to receive crude oil export payments in the South Korean Iranian central bank account, which was frozen due to US economic sanctions, but it is analyzed that the relationship between the US and Iran is fundamentally.
The British Guardian emphasized that until recently, Korea and Iran had been conducting diplomatic consultations on how to provide frozen funds through humanitarian trade that is not related to sanctions. “Iranian hard-liners are trying to strengthen their powers ahead of the launch of the new US administration. He may have chosen to detain the vessel as a means of interfering with them.”
The fact that the last 3rd was the first anniversary of the killing of Commander Soleimani, the Iranian revolutionary defender by a drone attack by the United States, is a part of the analysis that the Korean Chemihoe was struck by a burning fire amid tensions between the United States and Iran.
The United States recently moved and deployed B-52 bombers in Iran, and announced that it will continue to deploy the nuclear carrier Nimitz in the Middle East on the grounds of expanding threats against Iran. The decision was overturned four days after the announcement of the move to the mainland of Nimitsu.