SEOUL — South Korea is weighing an expansion of its military operations in the Middle East, the Kyunghyang Shinmun newspaper reported on Thursday, as the United States ally comes under pressure from President Donald Trump to provide support for the war in Iran.

Citing unnamed sources, the newspaper said Seoul is considering widening the operational area of its Cheonghae anti-piracy unit, which was dispatched to the Gulf of Aden in 2009, to include the Gulf of Oman, which links to the Strait of Hormuz. The strait is the Persian Gulf's main outlet for oil shipments, and South Korea, which imports the bulk of its crude from the Middle East, has a direct stake in the security of those waters.

The administration of President Lee Jae Myung plans to submit a motion to parliament to extend the unit's mission, which is set to expire at the end of this year, according to the report. The government is also weighing the deployment of a frigate to the region to reinforce operations, the paper said.

In a statement to Reuters, South Korea's Defense Ministry said the government was reviewing whether to send motion to parliament on an extension of the unit's service before it expires on December 31, 2026. The ministry added that nothing had been decided on the details of any extension of the anti-piracy unit's operations.

The ministry's statement also noted that the situation in the Gulf of Aden was worsening, with pirate activity up sharply from a year earlier. The gulf sits on one of the world's busiest shipping corridors, which carries much of the trade between Asia and Europe through the Suez Canal.

According to South Korean broadcaster YTN, the Cheonghae unit currently comprises a 4,400-ton-class destroyer, a maritime operations helicopter, up to three rigid-hull inflatable boats, and around 300 service members.

Mr. Trump has criticized Seoul for what he called insufficient support for the Iran war and scaled back major joint military drills by the two countries' armed forces this summer, a move that unsettled the US ally.

President Lee said on September 18 that he would not deploy military assets to the Middle East in a way that could draw the country into conflict, but added that Seoul was reviewing whether to play a greater role in safeguarding navigation in the region. With the ministry saying nothing has been decided, the questions ahead include the timing and scope of the parliamentary motion, whether the patrol area is formally extended to the Gulf of Oman, and whether a frigate is added to reinforce the deployment. — Reuters