Lee puts national interests first in weighing Hormuz deployment
President Lee Jae Myung told French President Emmanuel Macron that Korea's role in securing the Strait of Hormuz will depend on national interests and public consensus.
Korean President Lee Jae Myung, left, is seen with French President Emmanuel Macron during a joint statement at the Élysée Palace in Paris on Sept. 8.AP/YONHAP
PARIS — President Lee Jae Myung signaled Tuesday that Seoul won't be rushed into deploying troops to the Strait of Hormuz, telling French President Emmanuel Macron that any decision would rest on Korea's "national interests and public consensus" rather than outside pressure.
“Recognizing the importance of stability in the strait, we will determine how to contribute based on our national interests and public consensus,” Lee told Macron during a two-hour lunch at the Élysée Palace in Paris. The following expanded summit brought in both delegations and lasted one hour and six minutes.
“The two leaders went beyond bilateral issues during their private lunch and exchanged views on major global challenges including the Strait of Hormuz and the war in Ukraine,” National Security Adviser Wi Sung-lac said after the summit.
“The talks broadened their common ground on key issues and explored avenues for strategic cooperation, all of which strengthened the global strategic partnership between the two countries.”
The talks centered on Korea’s potential role in a France- and Britain-proposed effort to keep the Strait of Hormuz secure and open, a senior Blue House official said. The discussion did not presuppose a military contribution or troop deployment,steps the United States has been pressuring Korea to take.
“It would be premature to characterize today’s discussion as being about deploying troops,” the official said. “We have not narrowed down what form our contribution could take. That means we are not yet debating combat versus noncombat options. The discussion did not move the review forward.”
Korean President Lee Jae Myung, right, and French President Emmanuel Macron arrive at the "Lumiere Summit" meeting on the future of cinema and the moving-image industry at the Maeght Foundation in Saint-Paul-de-Vence, France, on Sept. 7.AP/YONHAP
Korea remains in consultations with a range of countries — namely, the United States — for its “practical contributions” in the Strait of Hormuz, according to the official.
“Korea’s position is to have a role in international efforts to keep the Strait of Hormuz open to navigation,” the official said. “We are in talks with France, Britain and the United States.”
Korea’s presidential office stressed that building consensus among the countries involved must come first. It cautioned against reading more into the situation, noting that Macron’s remark that Korea and France would work together “once the necessary consensus is reached” was in line with Seoul’s position.
Korea's President Lee Jae Myung, left, and France's President Emmanuel Macron pose before a meeting at the Élysée Palace in Paris on Sept. 8.AP/YONHAP
Reports of a possible Ministry of National Defense assessment mission to the Middle East and plans for a National Security Council meeting were “simply part of the review process,” the official said.
The official also rejected suggestions that the pace of Seoul’s deliberations was tied to Korean investment in the United States.
“Reviewing a troop deployment takes time,” the official said. “Investment has no bearing on whether we speed up or slow down that process.”
Lee then headed to the Marigny state guesthouse across from the Élysée Palace, where he encouraged greater bilateral investment and exchanges at a roundtable bringing together 20 Korean and French companies, Wi said
For the state dinner, hosted by Macron and his wife, Lee returned to the Élysée Palaceto dine with about 120 guests from Korea and France.
During his five-day, three-night visit, Lee shared four meals with Macron: a dinner with creators from five continents on Sunday, the official Lumière Summit luncheon on Monday, a private lunch before Tuesday's summit and the state dinner later that day.
Korean President Lee Jae Myung, second right, and his wife Kim Hea Kyung, far right, French President Emmanuel Macron, second left, and his wife Brigitte Macron, pose at the Élysée Palace in Paris on Sept. 8.AP/YONHAP
Lee and Macron's warm rapport was on display as they embraced at the welcoming ceremony and again after their joint press conference.
Wi said the revision of the bilateral agreement on the protection of classified military information and the mutual logistics support agreement reached around the summit “laid an institutional foundation to streamline military and government exchanges between the two countries and deepen cooperation.”
He dismissed suspicions that the agreements were groundwork for a potential Korean military contribution in the Strait of Hormuz. “These are longstanding issues that have been in the works for years,” Wi said.
He also described the launch of a high-level civilian nuclear dialogue as “an important pillar of cooperation” between the two countries.
This article was originally written in Korean and translated by a bilingual reporter with the help of generative AI tools. It was then edited by a native English-speaking editor. All AI-assisted translations are reviewed and refined by our newsroom.
