South Korea's Ministry of National Defense sent an assessment team to the United Arab Emirates over the weekend to examine security conditions and operational circumstances around the Strait of Hormuz, but experts said the mission does not indicate that Seoul has decided to deploy forces. The government is weighing possible military support for U.S.-led efforts amid the war with Iran and has not finalized whether to send troops or other assets. Seoul has denied that Washington imposed a formal November deadline, although reports linked the timing to the Nov. 3 U.S. midterm elections. The team is assessing combat conditions, bases, ports and logistics, while a proposed supply ship would take about a month to reach the area, making patrol aircraft and other aerial assets more practical options. A decision reportedly would need to be made in September to allow time for National Assembly approval, which could face opposition from Democratic Party of Korea lawmakers Lee Ki-heon and Kim Yong-min and other pro-government parties. Iran warned that military presence or operational participation in the strait would bring serious consequences and threatened retaliation. Seoul is also accelerating U.S. investment plans, including the Encinal gas-fired combined-cycle power plant in Texas, while seeking reciprocity in talks over nuclear submarine fuel transfer and wartime operational control. A possible North Korea-U.S. summit around the APEC summit in Shenzhen, China, in mid-November remains another factor in the government's calculations.