South Korea prepared a plan to deploy non-combat naval assets to the Strait of Hormuz, according to Chosun Daily

Non-combat framing matters, as it signals a contribution calibrated to reassure insurers and flag registries without raising the escalation profile, a distinction that has separated episodes that stayed contained from those that did not. The transmission channel for the market has typically run through war-risk premia, tanker insurance rates and freight costs on Gulf loadings rather than through physical supply loss, and those premia have tended to fade once a credible security presence is in place. South Korea has prior form here, having previously maintained a naval presence in Gulf-adjacent waters and participated in ad hoc escort arrangements, so the move reads as continuity rather than a new departure. What bears watching is whether the plan advances to actual deployment, how it sits alongside any broader multinational effort, and whether Tehran treats outside naval presence in the strait as neutral or provocation. As reporting rather than an executed decision, the signal is directional.