US President Donald Trump has paused “Project Freedom,” the American military’s effort to guide stranded ships out of the Strait of Hormuz. This pause allows Washington to finalize a deal with Iran. However, the US blockade of Iranian ports will stay in place, even as negotiations with Iran progress toward an agreement to end the war.
Trump pause Project Freedom for settlement with Iran
“Great progress made toward a complete and final agreement with representatives of Iran,” Trump said in a post.
He mentioned that he was pausing the effort for a short time to give space for US diplomatic efforts to finalize a settlement with Iran, despite an increase in military activity in recent days.
“Based on the request of Pakistan and other countries, the military success that we had during the campaign against Iran, and the fact that great progress made toward a complete and final agreement with representatives of Iran, we mutually agreed that, while the blockade remain in full force, Project Freedom paused for a short period to see whether or not the agreement can be finalized and signed,” he said.
‘Op Epic Fury Is Over’
The announcement came just hours after military leaders and US Secretary of State Marco Rubio said that a ceasefire in the Middle East remains in place. They noted that while the conflict not resolved, the initial major US military operation against Iran has concluded.
“The operation is over. Epic Fury, as the president informed Congress, we done with that stage of it,” Rubio said.
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