The international response to ensure freedom of navigation in the Strait of Hormuz might get even more fragmented.
South Korea, at one time reported as a member-to-be in the US-led International Maritime Security Construct (IMSC), might send its own mission to the region instead of signing on as the group's eighth member, according to a report in the Korea Times.
"We have not yet decided on whether to participate as a member of IMSC," Presidential Chief of Staff Noh Young-min reportedly said.
"But the government is reviewing possible ways to protect the lives and properties of our people and companies in the Middle East amid the recent political turmoil there ... Such a review is progressing considerably."
The IMSC has seven members, the US, UK, UAE, Australia, Albania, Bahrain and Saudi Arabia, and is based in Bahrain.
Meanwhile, the French have launched their own mission, EMASOH, joined by the Netherlands and Japan and India maintain their own forces in the region.
All four groups aim to ensure commercial shipping can pass through the strait — where as much as a fifth of all the world's oil passes each day — unharmed.
Concerns were raised when six tankers were attacked in the spring, two with explosions. Iran was said to be behind the attacks.
While no more attacks have taken place since, Iran has been seizing ships in the region and tensions remain high after a US airstrike killed Iranian General Qassam Soleimani and Iran retaliated with a missile strike on an Iraqi base.
Both the US and UK have warned against potential threats in the region, with the US warning ships against potential cyber attacks.
When South Korea was considering joining, the country's anti-piracy Cheonghae Unit, stationed nearby in the Gulf of Aden, was expected to be dispatched to the IMSC.
Should South Korea turn down the US, it would be one of many prominent countries to do so. Germany refused to join either the IMSC or the French mission, while Japan, reportedly like South Korea, did not want to jeopardize relations with Iran.
