The government is drawing up plans to dispatch chartered planes to the Middle East to bring home Koreans stranded in the region due to the ongoing conflict involving Iran, Foreign Minister Cho Hyun said Thursday. The top diplomat made the remarks during his appearance on a radio program with the broadcasting network SBS, with around 21,000 Koreans reportedly remaining in 10 Middle East countries, including 4,000 short-term travelers. Cho said while the government has the option of mobilizing military transport jets, it is "thoroughly looking into which would be the most prompt and effective" between sending military or chartered planes. The official warned against "excessive worries" about the Middle East situation, saying the conflict may come to an end at some point as both sides are concerned about further escalating or prolonging it. On Tuesday, about 140 Koreans were evacuated from Iran, Israel and other neighboring nations, including those who left on a chartered bus arranged by the Korean Embassy, as Seoul strives to help nationals leave the conflict-hit region. Sending planes and