In an interview with a South Korean media outlet, Cho suggested that he could soon hold another phone call with Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi following South Korea’s investigation into the attack.
“We will tell the Iranian side through other channels that we reached this conclusion and that such an incident must never happen again,” Cho said.
Asked whether he planned to directly raise the issue with Araghchi, Cho said the two ministers had agreed during a previous conversation to speak again soon.
“We said during the last call that we should talk again soon, so we will likely do so,” he said.
South Korea’s government announced findings Wednesday that the Namu had been struck by a missile of Iranian origin, but stopped short of directly blaming Tehran for the attack.
Cho defended the government’s cautious response, citing the presence of South Korean nationals and vessels in the region.
“There are 25 South Korean ships in the Strait of Hormuz, as well as diplomatic staff and Korean nationals in Iran,” he said. “Taking various factors into account, we chose an appropriate level of response.”
Cho added that South Korea also has long-term economic interests tied to possible reconstruction projects in the region if tensions between the United States and Iran ease.
“Still, this is not the end of it,” he said. “We will continue conveying to Iran that such an incident should never happen again.”
Cho also addressed comments by President Lee Jae Myung regarding Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and an International Criminal Court warrant against him.
“What Israel did by detaining activists on the high seas was a violation of international law,” Cho said. “But the ICC is where international law and international politics intersect. The realities of international politics must also be taken into consideration.”
On North Korea, Cho said Pyongyang currently shows “no sign” of returning to dialogue with Seoul, but expressed hope that the North would eventually respond to the Lee government’s outreach efforts.
“Our basic position is peaceful coexistence through dialogue,” he said. “Sending drones to North Korea would be wrong. The point is to come to the dialogue table.”
Cho’s remarks came after Singaporean Foreign Minister Vivian Balakrishnan visited North Korea earlier this week before traveling to Seoul for talks Thursday.
South Korea’s Foreign Ministry said Cho and Balakrishnan discussed efforts to create conditions for dialogue with North Korea and exchanged views on regional security issues.
Balakrishnan visited Pyongyang on Tuesday and Wednesday, where he met North Korean Foreign Minister Choe Son Hui and senior official Jo Yong Won. It marked the first visit to North Korea by a Singaporean foreign minister since 2018, when Singapore hosted the first summit between then-U.S. President Donald Trump and North Korean leader Kim Jong-un.
Balakrishnan also said he invited North Korea to attend the ASEAN Regional Forum scheduled for July in Manila. North Korea had participated in the annual security forum since 2000 but skipped last year’s meeting in Kuala Lumpur.
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