- Trump calls “Project Freedom” a humanitarian gesture for stranded ships.
- Iran is blocking significant flows of oil, gas and fertilizer to the global economy.
- More than 900 commercial ships are present in the Gulf, according to a maritime intelligence company.
Iran warned on Monday that it would view any U.S. attempt to intervene in the Strait of Hormuz as a violation of the Middle East ceasefire, as President Donald Trump said the United States would begin escorting ships through the blocked waterway.
Negotiations between the two countries have been deadlocked since the ceasefire took effect on April 8, and Iran’s control of the strategic strait following US-Israeli attacks on Tehran is a main point of contention.
Trump said Sunday that the new maritime operation, which he dubbed “Project Freedom,” was a “humanitarian” gesture for the crews aboard the many ships swept away by the blockade and which may lack food and other essential supplies.
“We will do our best to get their ships and crews out of the strait safely. In any case, they have said they will not return until the area becomes safe for navigation,” Trump said in a Truth Social article, specifying that operations would begin Monday.
In response, the head of the Iranian Parliament’s national security committee said: “Any US interference in the new maritime regime in the Strait of Hormuz will be considered a violation of the ceasefire.”
By blocking the Strait of Hormuz, Iran blocked significant flows of oil, gas and fertilizer to the global economy, while the United States imposed a counter-blockade on Iranian ports.
Trump, in his message, said he was “fully aware that my representatives are having very positive discussions with Iran and that those discussions could lead to something very positive for all.”
He made no direct mention of what Tehran described as a 14-point plan “focused on ending the war.”
U.S. Central Command said it would use guided-missile destroyers, more than 100 land and sea-based aircraft, multi-domain unmanned platforms and 15,000 troops in the Hormuz effort.
As of April 29, more than 900 commercial vessels were located in the Gulf, according to maritime intelligence firm AXSMarine.
“Operation impossible”
American news site Axiosciting two sources briefed on the proposal, reported that Iran had set “a one-month deadline for negotiations on a deal to reopen the strait,” lift the U.S. naval blockade and end the war.
Earlier on Sunday, the Revolutionary Guard sought to shift the blame to Trump, saying he had to choose between “an impossible operation or a bad deal with the Islamic Republic of Iran.”
Washington’s European allies fear that the longer the strait remains closed, the more their economies will suffer, and German Foreign Minister Johann Wadephul has demanded its reopening.
In a call with his Iranian counterpart Abbas Araghchi, Wadephul stressed that Germany supported a negotiated solution but that “Iran must completely and verifiably renounce nuclear weapons and immediately open the Strait of Hormuz.”
Oil prices are currently around 50% higher than pre-conflict levels, largely due to supply difficulties across the strait.
“Stifle the diet”
The US president, who spent the weekend at his Mar-a-Lago resort in Florida, refused on Sunday to specify what could trigger new US military action.
But in his message he said that “if in any way this humanitarian process (of guiding the ship) is hindered, this interference will unfortunately have to be resisted forcefully.”
Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent said the U.S. naval blockade was only part of a broader economic embargo.
“We are stifling the regime and they are not able to pay their soldiers. This is a real economic blockade, and it concerns all parts of the government,” he said. Fox News.
In even more bellicose rhetoric, Mohsen Rezaei, military adviser to Iran’s Supreme Leader Ayatollah Mojtaba Khamenei, said Iranian forces would sink American ships.
“The United States is the only pirate in the world with aircraft carriers. Our ability to take on pirates is no less than our ability to sink warships. Prepare to face a graveyard of your aircraft carriers and forces,” he posted on X.
