Category: International Headlines

I didn’t think this 20% fee idea was going to last very long and sure enough 24 hours later it is gone:

U.S. President Donald Trump on Tuesday dropped his proposal to impose a 20 percent “reimbursement” fee on cargo shipped through the crucial Strait of Hormuz, saying that he will replace it with trade and investment deals with Middle Eastern countries.

Trump made the remarks in a social media post, just a day after he announced that the United States will serve as the “guardian” of the strait and be “reimbursed” at a 20 percent rate on all cargo shipped through the waterway that Iran had all but closed amid the Middle East conflict.

“Based on highly productive conversations with Middle East leadership, I have decided to replace the 20 percent United States Reimbursement Fee with Trade and Investment Deals that the various Gulf States will be making into the United States,” Trump wrote on Truth Social. (……)

During a press availability, Trump said that he scrapped the proposed fee as Gulf state officials told him over the phone that they would like to “do it a different way” and invest in the U.S. “with billions and billions of dollars.”

Yonhap

You can read more at the link.

President Lee is cleverly calling the $100 million recovery and reconstruction funds in order to not offend Moscow:

President Lee Jae Myung shakes hands with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy ahead of their bilateral summit at a hotel in Ankara, Turkey, Wednesday. Yonhap

President Lee Jae Myung had his first bilateral summit with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy on the sidelines of the NATO summit in Ankara, Wednesday. Lee announced a $100 million comprehensive support package for war-torn Ukraine, and they discussed how to handle North Korean prisoners of war (POWs) in the country in accordance with international law and humanitarian principles.

Korea Times

You can read more at the link.

The article doesn’t say, but it appears that this South Korean ship was one of the 200 that President Trump said successfully passed through the Strait of Hormuz with the assistance of the U.S. military:

Another vessel operated by a South Korean shipper has successfully passed through the crisis-stricken Strait of Hormuz, marking the second case of its kind, Seoul’s oceans ministry said Thursday.

The vessel is a liquefied natural gas (LNG) carrier operated by a Korean shipping company under a charter agreement with a foreign party, with eight Korean crew members on board, according to the Ministry of Oceans and Fisheries. Details of the ship, the company and the foreign charterer were undisclosed.

The ministry said the decision was made through consultations between the Korean shipper and the foreign charterer.

The vessel is headed to a different destination than South Korea, it added. 

With the latest case, the number of South Korean vessels stranded in the Strait of Hormuz went down to 24 from 25, with the number of Korean sailors down to 139 from 147.

Yonhap

You can read more at the link.

If this news is true Iran is losing its grip on its biggest bargaining chip:

U.S. President Donald Trump said Wednesday that more than 100 million barrels of oil and 200 commercial ships transited the crucial Strait of Hormuz thanks to the United States’ mission to support safe passage through the waterway.

Trump made the remarks in a social media post, calling the mission “widely successful,” as South Korea and other countries have been closely watching developments in the strait that has effectively been closed amid the U.S.-Israeli war on Iran. More than two dozen South Korean vessels have been trapped in the strait due to the war.

Yonhap

You can read more at the link, but the next question will be if international shipping companies will be willing to send ships in to get more oil supplies. Getting them out is one thing, but if the companies do not want to send their ships back in Iran still effectively controls the Strait even if the U.S. has shown they can safely move vessels through it.

It should not be surprising that the Iranian regime is willing to blatantly lie despite smoking gun evidence they committed the attack:

Two missiles were fired. The first warhead failed to explode, while the second struck the vessel’s stern hull.

Following the briefing, the foreign ministry summoned Iran’s ambassador to South Korea, Saeed Koozechi, to protest the attack and demand accountability from Tehran.

However, the Iranian envoy denied his country’s involvement in the strike. Speaking to reporters, he said he was personally sorry for the incident but insisted that Iran was not responsible and had never been involved in the attack.

The Iranian Embassy has yet to release an official statement regarding the findings.

Iran must clarify its position on the Korean foreign ministry’s briefing. Tehran’s silence will only fuel speculation and suspicions that it is hiding something.

Korea Times

You can read more at the link.

Does anyone believe these Gaza activists that they were beaten and tortured by the IDF?:

The foreign ministry said Monday it has pressed Israel to conduct a thorough investigation into claims by two South Korean activists that they were assaulted by Israeli forces after being detained aboard aid vessels bound for the Gaza Strip.

The ministry said it called in deputy Israeli ambassador to South Korea to its office Saturday and conveyed its concerns over those allegations.

The two activists, Kim Ah-hyun and Kim Dong-hyeon, returned home Friday following their release. Upon arrival, they both said they had been assaulted by Israeli forces, with Kim Ah-hyun claiming that she had lost some hearing in her left ear because she had been struck on that side of the face several times.

The ministry said it demanded a thorough investigation into the matter and stressed that appropriate measures must be taken if inhumane acts by Israeli forces are found to be true.

Yonhap

You can read more at the link.

With US having a hard time keeping up with demand for Patriot interceptors causing the Gulf states to look at other options to rearm:

“Six weeks of relentless air bombardment sapped air defense stocks in the Middle East. Now begins the scramble to rearm.

With a fragile cease-fire in place between the U.S. and Iran, America’s closest allies in the region—and some of the best customers for U.S. weapons systems—are scanning the world for alternative missile defenses, getting creative about ways to bolster defenses quickly.

Saudi Arabia, Qatar and the United Arab Emirates are turning to South Korean missile-defense systems, Ukrainian drones that smash into targets midair and traditional American Gatling guns. ”

Wall Street Journal

You can read more at the link, but Hanhwa’s M-SAM is a top priority for these countries to acquire before round three of the Iran War kicks off.

As expected the Lee administration is going with the strongly worded letter approach in response to the Iranian attack on a Korean ship:

The damaged hull of Korean-operated, Panama-flagged cargo vessel HMM Namu, which was hit by unidentified airborne objects while near the Strait of Hormuz, May 4 / Courtesy of Ministry of Foreign Affairs

A senior Korean government official said Thursday that Iran is almost certainly behind the attack on the Korean-operated cargo ship HMM Namu in the Strait of Hormuz on May 4, while stressing that an investigation is still underway and vowing a “diplomatic offensive” against those responsible once confirmed.

“Although the investigation is not yet conclusive, based on common sense, it is unlikely any actor other than Iran was responsible for the attack,” the official said, noting there were no pirates operating in the area at the time.

Korea Times

You can read more at the link.

It is pretty clear that Korea like all the other international countries are going to delay any military support to opening the Strait of Hormuz as long as possible:

South Korean Defense Minister Ahn Gyu-back (L) and U.S. Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth pose ahead of their talks at the Pentagon near Washington, D.C., on May 11, 2026. (Pool photo) (Yonhap)

 Defense Minister Ahn Gyu-back said Wednesday he has told his U.S. counterpart that Seoul will review making phased contributions to Washington’s initiative in restoring safe passage in the Strait of Hormuz.

Speaking to reporters at the South Korean Embassy in Washington, Ahn said Seoul conveyed to Washington that it would “participate as a responsible member of the international community and review ways to contribute in phases” while sharing details of his discussions with his U.S. counterpart, Pete Hegseth, at the Pentagon earlier this week.

Ahn cited the declaring of support, dispatching personnel, sharing information and providing military assets as possible means of participation.

Yonhap

You can read more at the link.