As U.S. President Donald Trump referred to HMM's cargo ship incident in the Strait of Hormuz as "Iran opening fire," the U.S. Department of Defense on the 5th (local time) emphasized that Korea and others should join efforts to keep the strait open. However, it did not address the exact cause of the incident.
U.S. Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth said at a Pentagon briefing that day, when asked whether there were signs Korea would join Operation Project Freedom, "We hope that will be the case." Project Freedom is a U.S.-led mission to escort ships trapped in the Strait of Hormuz, which began on the 4th (local time). A merchant ship operated by Danish shipping company Maersk left the Strait of Hormuz on the first day of the operation with U.S. military support.
Minister Hegseth said, "We hope Korea will step up," adding, "We have the same expectations for Japan, Australia, and Europe." He went on, "President Trump also made it clear, 'Those are your ships, so you should take part in the defense,'" and added, "We are trying to set the (operational) conditions we can hand over to them. We very strongly hope they will actually participate."
Minister Hegseth's remarks are similar to President Trump's message the day before. Trump wrote on social media the day before, "Iran has opened fire at unrelated countries, including a Korean cargo ship, in connection with ship movements under Project Freedom," adding, "Now it seems time for Korea to come here and join this operation."
At about 8:40 p.m. the day before, Korea time, an explosion occurred on the port side of the engine room of our shipping company–operated vessel HMM Namu (NAMU), which was anchored in waters near the United Arab Emirates on the inside of the Strait of Hormuz. A total of 24 people were on board, including six Korean crew members, and fortunately there were no casualties.
Meanwhile, at the briefing that day, Minister Hegseth did not present specific analysis or military grounds regarding the cause of the HMM Namu's explosion.