[Anchor]
As South Korea deliberates whether to dispatch troops to the Strait of Hormuz, the Iranian government has issued a public warning. Stating that participation in military operations would mean supporting the aggressor and lead to severe consequences, Iran posted the message in Korean.
Correspondent Lee Hanseok reports from Washington.
[Reporter]
"Dangerous choices come with a price." A spokesperson for Iran's Ministry of Foreign Affairs unusually posted an image containing Korean text along with an official statement written in Korean on social media.
Stating that "Iran highly values its friendly relations with South Korea," the statement warned that "any nation participating in military operations in the Strait of Hormuz will be regarded as supporting the aggressor, which will result in serious consequences."
It appears Korean was used to deliver a clear message to Seoul not to yield to pressure from the United States.
Mohammad Marandi, a professor at the University of Tehran in Iran who has also served as an adviser for nuclear negotiations with the United States, went as far as to suggest that Iran could target South Korean assets in the Middle East.
[Mohammad Marandi / Professor, University of Tehran : Iran will consider this a hostile act and will seek to destroy all assets that South Korea holds in this region.]
In addition, the secretary-general of Iran's Supreme National Security Council warned that a new control zone would be declared just outside the Strait of Hormuz.
Meanwhile, the United States has repeatedly pressured other nations to provide military support, framing it as a global economic necessity to secure "Middle Eastern oil transportation."
U.S. Energy Secretary Chris Wright stated that he hopes military assets from allies outside the Middle East will arrive swiftly.
[Chris Wright / U.S. Energy Secretary : I think other countries will join in this effort going forward because global trade is important.]
The White House once again singled out South Korea.
A White House official specifically named South Korea as one of the major importers of Middle Eastern crude oil, pressing that Washington is still waiting for Seoul to commit resources to the region.
Pressure from both the United States and Iran regarding South Korea's potential troop deployment is simultaneously intensifying.
(Video by Park Eunha | Video editing by Cho Muhwan)
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