SOUTH KOREA TO EXPAND ANTI-PIRACY UNIT TOWARD HORMUZ STRAIT

South Korea plans to expand the operations of its Cheonghae anti-piracy unit into waters closer to the Strait of Hormuz, the Ministry of National Defence said. The government intends to submit a motion to the National Assembly to extend the unit's deployment, which is due to expire at the end of 2026. A defence ministry spokesperson told Reuters the move follows pressure from the United States for support related to the war on Iran. The expanded mandate would widen the unit's area of operations to waters near the port of Duqm in Oman, roughly 650km from the Strait of Hormuz, according to the ministry.

The Cheonghae unit has patrolled the Gulf of Aden since 2009 to protect commercial shipping. Its latest contingent left Busan on 2 October aboard the Chungmugong Yi Sun-sin, a 4,400-tonne destroyer carrying a maritime helicopter and about 300 service members, officials told Yonhap News Agency. Under the proposed mandate, the unit would push northeast into the Arabian Sea south of Oman, roughly doubling its operating radius to about 1,930km. The expansion would add 75 personnel, including a bomb disposal team, along with a P-8A maritime patrol aircraft to help monitor shipping routes, officials said.

The cabinet is set to endorse the motion next week before it goes to lawmakers, Yonhap reported. Officials told the news agency the mission would remain strictly noncombat, with the unit staying under South Korean command and operating independently of allied forces. A defence official, speaking on condition of anonymity, told Yonhap: "The enhancement of the Cheonghae unit's mission is to protect our citizens and safeguard our economic interests." The National Assembly has yet to vote on the extension.