Cheong Wa Dae says Lee's 'no war intervention' remark not a rejection of Trump's Hormuz request

SEOUL, Sept. 19 (Yonhap) -- President Lee Jae Myung's statement that South Korea would not send troops to engage or intervene in a war was not a rejection of U.S. President Donald Trump's request for Seoul to contribute military forces to the strategic Strait of Hormuz, according to Cheong Wa Dae. The presidential office clarified this position following a report in The New York Times that Lee's comments at a press conference on Friday implied a rejection of Trump's appeal for South Korean military cooperation in the Middle East.

Lee did not explicitly turn down Trump's request during the press conference, a presidential official told reporters anonymously. The government is currently reviewing practical means of contributing to international efforts, in close communication with the U.S., to protect South Korean citizens and safeguard national interests.

Seoul will continue to examine concrete options under its principle of not intervening in war or combat, the official added. On Friday, Lee stated during the nationally televised press conference that "there will be no dispatch of troops that engages or intervenes in a war," while noting that the Cheonghae Unit had already been deployed to the region to counter piracy and other threats to South Korean safety, and that Seoul is reviewing ways to strengthen that role.