U.S. Ambassador to South Korea Michelle Steel held a private meeting with senior Cheong Wa Dae officials on September 17, amid unresolved disagreements over South Korea’s potential deployment to the Strait of Hormuz and implementation of a $200 billion investment plan in the U.S. The meeting took place a day before President Lee Jae Myung’s press conference and as Foreign Minister Cho Hyun traveled to Washington, D.C., for talks with U.S. Secretary of State and White House National Security Advisor Marco Rubio on September 18, local time. A planned National Security Council (NSC, South Korea’s top security coordination body) meeting on the Hormuz request was canceled, while government reports to the National Assembly and the signing of a memorandum of understanding (MOU, a preliminary cooperation agreement) for the first U.S.-bound investment project were postponed. The discussions reportedly covered possible South Korean contributions to freedom of navigation, including logistical or non-combat support rather than combat troops, as well as the timing of investment announcements and follow-up projects. Domestic opposition to any deployment remains strong. Other unresolved issues include stalled agreements on nuclear-powered submarines and uranium enrichment rights, intelligence sharing on North Korea, wartime operational control, and the possibility of U.S.-North Korea dialogue.