During a meeting with South Korea's Defence Minister Jeong Kyeong-doo, US Defence Secretary Mark Esper requested that South Korea take part in an American maritime mission in the Strait of Hormuz, APA reports citing Sputnik.
The US has extended an invitation to a number of countries in Asia and Europe to join efforts allegedly aimed at protecting shipping in the crucial oil-exporting lane in the Strait of Hormuz. However, few countries have accepted the offer with Germany declining it and France reportedly remaining hesitant about it.