United States President Donald Trump claimed that neutral vessels that have been stranded since the beginning of the war with Iran will be guided through the Strait of Hormuz. Trump said that the US will facilitate this process, called Project Freedom, and touts it as a humanitarian effort.
Ebrahim Azizi, the head of the Iranian parliament’s national security commission, has already dismissed this idea as one of Trump’s “delusional posts,” saying any intervention in the strait would constitute a violation of the ceasefire.
Safe passage through the vital waterway has been limited since Iran closed the Strait soon after the US and Israel launched joint attacks on the country on February 28th. Since then, the US has created its own blockade of sorts on Iranian ports, keeping certain ships out.
An estimated 2,000 vessels have been trapped in and around the strait since Iran closed the waterway to most traffic in response to the US-Israeli bombing campaign, according to a report by RT.
“For the good of Iran, the Middle East, and the United States, we have told these countries that we will guide their ships safely out of these restricted waterways, so that they can freely and ably get on with their business,” Trump 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.”
The Wall Street Journal, citing a senior US official, described the initiative as a process through which countries, insurance companies, and shipping organizations can coordinate traffic through Hormuz. The official said it would not involve US warships escorting vessels. -RT
According to a report by Axios, which cited US officials, said US Navy ships would be “in the vicinity” in case they need to prevent Iran from attacking commercial vessels crossing the strait. The official added that the Navy would provide merchant ships with information about lanes that have not been mined by Iran.