South Korea's Lee rules out military involvement in Middle East conflict - Reuters

South Korea's Lee rules out military involvement in Middle East conflict | Reuters

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South Korea's Lee rules out military involvement in Middle East conflict

By

Heejin Kimand

Joyce Lee

September 17, 2026

9:55 PM EDT

Updated 7 hours ago

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!South Korean President Lee Jae Myung speaks during a press conference at the presidential Blue House in Seoul

South Korean President Lee Jae Myung speaks during a press conference at the presidential Blue House in Seoul, South Korea, Friday, September 18, 2026. Ahn Young-joon/Pool via REUTERS Purchase LicensingRights , opens new tab

* Summary

* President Lee Jae Myung holds wide-ranging news conference
* South Korea to safeguard Middle East shipping and crude transport, but no combat deployment, Lee says
* Trump-Kim summit possible, but variables need to align, he says
* Commercial viability remains sticking point in US investment negotiations, Lee says

SEOUL, Sept 18 (Reuters) - South Korean President Lee Jae Myung said on Friday he would not deploy military ‌assets to the Middle East in a way that could draw the country into conflict, but Seoul was reviewing whether to play a greater role in safeguarding navigation in the region.

South Korea has maintained a naval presence off the coast of Somalia in an anti-piracy mission, while resisting calls from US President Donald Trump to play a more active military role ​in supporting Washington over the war in Iran.

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"There won't be deployment that would involve or enter war. I can tell you that very clearly," ​Lee said at a news conference. "We won't deploy military assets in any form to that end."

He added, however, that ⁠it "is also clear that we must do the minimum as other countries do to protect our commercial shipping and crude shipments, and also the safety of ​our people."

South Korea's government has been reviewing a possible military deployment to the Strait of Hormuz, although the idea is proving unpopular domestically.

Trump has criticised Seoul for what ​he called insufficient support for the Iran war and scaled back major joint military drills by the two countries' armed forces this summer, a move that unsettled the US ally.

US INVESTMENT NEGOTIATIONS

Asked about progress in reaching an agreement with the United States on Seoul's US investment commitments under its trade deal with Washington, Lee said concern over the commercial viability of ​the package was the main sticking point.

Lee said there were elements that were difficult for Seoul to accept, but that the two sides were nearing ​an agreement.

South Korea committed last year to invest $350 billion in US manufacturing in return for Washington lowering tariffs on Korean imports to 15%.

Seoul this week postponed a parliamentary briefing on the investment ‌plans, which ⁠is now expected to take place next week.

TRUMP-KIM SUMMIT

Lee said it was possible that a meeting between Trump and North Korean leader Kim Jong Un could take place in coming months, but many factors needed to align for that to happen.

"But what's clear is that President Trump wants talks, and I want him to as well, and we're continuing coordination to make dialogue between the North and the US possible," he said.

North Korean state media has so far remained ​largely silent on the repeated calls from ​Trump for such a meeting. Trump ⁠has been pushing aides for a meeting with Kim as soon as the autumn, the Wall Street Journal has reported.

RULES OUT SECOND TERM

Lee, whose approval ratings have fallen sharply in recent months, said he was renewing his commitment to improving the ​life of Koreans and said his term would end in 2030 as permitted by the Constitution.

There have been questions ​about whether Lee ⁠and his Democratic Party, which holds a parliamentary majority, might try to amend the Constitution to enable him to seek reelection.

"Let me say this firmly. I have no intention of seeking a consecutive term whatsoever," he told the news conference.

The presidency is currently restricted to a single five-year term under the Constitution and a sitting president ⁠is specifically ​excluded from any amendment affecting the presidential term.

Lee also said he would push ahead with measures ​to ease the concentration of the current capital, Seoul, by designating Seoul as the economic capital and Sejong as the political capital.

Many government agencies are already located in Sejong, in South Korea's ​central region and about 120 km (75 miles) south of Seoul.

Reporting by Heejin Kim, Joyce Lee, Kyu-seok Shim and Jihoon Lee Writing by Jack Kim
Editing by Ed Davies

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