What is Project Freedom? Donald Trump’s mission to free ships trapped in Strait of Hormuz paused
The US moved into the next phase of the war with Iran, with the ending of Operation Epic Fury and the beginning of Project Freedom, before it was swiftly paused.
Hours after Secretary of State Marco Rubio announced a pivot from the first phase of war to the next ambitious project, the US has backflipped.
US President Donald Trump launched a mission to help get traffic flowing in the Strait of Hormuz, which he dubbed “Project Freedom”.
However, on Wednesday morning, it was announced that it had been “paused”.
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By continuing you agree to our Terms and Privacy Policy.“Based on the request of Pakistan and other Countries, the tremendous Military Success that we have had during the Campaign against the Country of Iran and, additionally, the fact that Great Progress has been made toward a Complete and Final Agreement with Representatives of Iran, we have mutually agreed that, while the Blockade will remain in full force and effect, Project Freedom (The Movement of Ships through the Strait of Hormuz) will be paused for a short period of time to see whether or not the Agreement can be finalized and signed,” Mr Trump said on Truth Social.
It came after Secretary of State Marco Rubio declared the initial US operation in Iran, Operation Epic Fury, complete, with the US moving into a new stage of the war with the launch of the new project.
Before the backflip, Mr Trump said in a Truth Social post that Project Freedom was an attempt to “guide” international ships out of the Strait of Hormuz, which has been largely blocked since 28 February.
“We will guide their Ships safely out of these restricted Waterways, so that they can freely and ably get on with their business,” he wrote.
“The Ship movement is merely meant to free up people, companies, and Countries that have done absolutely nothing wrong — They are victims of circumstance.”
It is estimated that there are up to 2000 ships stranded in the Arabian Gulf.
The White House has labelled Iran as “pirates” over the strong hold of the Strait of Hormuz, adding people are trapped and running out of supplies.
Mr Trump called it a “humanitarian gesture” for countries that are “merely neutral and innocent bystanders”.
He warned that anyone interfered with the mission, they would be “dealt with forcefully”.
The project will involve more than 15,000 US service members and 100 aircraft.
Mr Rubio said the project was optimistic but he was hopeful.
“Look, it’s not going to solve the whole straits problem,” he said.
“It’s going to solve a lot of it, but it’s important to challenge what Iran is doing now.”
Mr Rubio later added, “Iran cannot be allowed to normalise this control of the straits. It’s completely unlawful, illegal, it’s outrageous. And every country should be joining us in condemning it and doing something about it, but the United States has stepped up and is trying to do something about it.”
While “Project Freedom” was expected to launch on Monday morning Middle East time, there has not yet been any significant increase in movement.
So far, it is understood that two ships have made it through the strait.
America’s top general, Dan Caine, said on Tuesday that there were roughly 22,500 mariners stuck in the strait.
“We anticipate more (ships) to transit over the coming days,” he said.
There are concerns the mission could result in an escalation amid an already-fragile ceasefire.
