South Korean Foreign Minister Cho Hyun and U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio met at the State Department in Washington on Sept. 18, discussing freedom of navigation through the Strait of Hormuz, South Korea’s investment commitments to the United States, semiconductor cooperation and other strategic sectors. Cho said South Korea was committed to making substantive contributions with the United States and the international community to restore free passage through Hormuz, while President Lee Jae-myung had said the previous day that “there will be no troop deployment that involves or intervenes in the war.” Lee’s government is reviewing ways to strengthen the Cheonghae Unit’s mission in the Middle East, potentially allowing support for safe navigation without direct military intervention. Rubio called for South Korea to play a meaningful role in securing Hormuz and emphasized sustained cooperation on semiconductors and critical supply chains. He also urged swift implementation of the $350 billion investment commitment set out in the Joint Fact Sheet agreed by the two countries’ leaders last year, while raising the need for a fair and transparent business environment for U.S. companies. The U.S. side cited the Coupang issue and provisions of South Korea’s Act on Promotion of Information and Communications Network Utilization and Information Protection that could affect American information technology companies. Security consultations on South Korea’s pursuit of nuclear-powered submarines, uranium enrichment rights and wartime operational control transfer have not produced concrete results, although defense authorities agreed in principle to accelerate cooperation on OPCON transfer. A senior South Korean official said trade and investment negotiations had influenced the pace of security talks but expressed cautious optimism that consultations could advance after investment negotiations near completion. The U.S. delegation also visited Hanwha Ocean’s Geoje Shipyard to discuss possible shipbuilding cooperation. Around the meeting, North Korea launched two short-range ballistic missiles from the Wonsan area into the East Sea on Sept. 20, after threatening “responsive action” two days earlier. The allies reaffirmed North Korea’s complete denuclearization and South Korea-U.S.-Japan security cooperation while reviewing their framework for responding to provocations.