FM Cohen Talks ‘Fight Against Iran’ During Visit to S. Korea

Foreign Minister Eli Cohen made a brief visit to South Korea on Wednesday for discussions with the country’s leaders on the threat posed by Tehran.

“South Korea understands very well the danger of a nuclear threat, and I intend to talk with my colleagues [in various nations] about the fight against Iran,” Cohen said.

“As minister of economy [in 2017-2020], I signed a free trade agreement with South Korea, and now I will work to increase trade between the countries and realize the potential of cooperation,” he added.

Iran on Tuesday revealed what it claimed was its first hypersonic missile. Iran is known to cooperate with North Korea in the development of missile technologies, thus giving Israel and South Korea common enemies.

The Fattah missile was presented at a ceremony attended by Iranian President Ebrahim Raisi, Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps Commander in Chief Maj. Gen. Hossein Salami and other top officials, Iran’s state-run IRNA news service reported.

According to the report, the weapon has a range of 1,400 kilometers (870 miles) and a maximum speed of Mach 13-15 (9,974.5-11,509 mph).

Defense Minister Yoav Gallant appeared to address the development during a visit to the Israel Defense Forces’ Northern Command on Tuesday in the context of the “Firm Hand” multi-front exercise.

“I hear our enemies boasting about weapons they are developing. To any such development, we have an even better response, whether it be on land, in the air or in the maritime arena, including both defensive and offensive means,” he said.

Cohen arrived in Seoul following a visit to Manila, marking the first time in 56 years that an Israeli foreign minister has visited the Philippines’ capital. The foreign minister met on Monday with President of the Philippines Ferdinand Marcos Jr., and Philippine Foreign Minister Enrique Manalo, holding a bilateral meeting with the latter to expand business and trade relations.

Cohen’s trip comes on the heels of his tour of Central European nations Austria, Croatia, Hungary and Slovakia last week.