China News Service, January 5, reported that on the 4th local time, the Iranian Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps seized a South Korean flag tanker, accusing it of "repeated violations of laws and regulations related to the marine environment."
South Korea’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs said on the evening of the 4th that it has requested the Iranian authorities to release the detained ship as soon as possible.
The South Korean Ministry of Defense also dispatched the destroyer "Cui Ying" to the waters near the Strait of Hormuz.
According to reports, a statement from the Islamic Revolutionary Guard of Iran stated that at the request of the prosecutors of Hormozgan Province and the National Port and Maritime Administration of Iran, the Revolutionary Guard Navy detained Jubail from Saudi Arabia in its jurisdiction on the same day. The departure of the Korean oil tanker "Korea Chemical".
The tanker was carrying about 7,200 tons of petrochemicals, 20 crew members, including 5 Koreans.
The ship was detained and docked at the southern port of Iran and has been transferred to the local judicial department for processing.
According to Korea Broadcasting International (KBS), the Ministry of National Defense of South Korea immediately dispatched the 4,400-ton destroyer "Cui Ying" of Qinghai troops on mission in Oman to the waters near the Strait of Hormuz after learning of the ship's detention.
A person from the South Korean government stated that in the early morning of the 5th, the destroyer "Cui Ying" of the South Korean Qinghai Force arrived in the waters near the Strait of Hormuz and had begun its mission.
The South Korean side has confirmed the safety of the five Korean crew members and requested the Iranian side to release the detained ship as soon as possible.
The Ministry of National Defense of South Korea stated that it will maintain close cooperation with the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, the Ministry of Maritime Affairs and Fisheries, and the Multinational Force to take appropriate response measures.