Trump pauses U.S. bid to guide ships out of Strait of Hormuz, cites Iran deal progress

President Donald Trump said Tuesday that he was pausing “Project Freedom,” the U.S. military’s effort to remove commercial ships from the Strait of Hormuz, a day after the operation began.

Trump, a Real Social postHe said the decision was based in part on “the fact that Great Progress has been made towards a Full and Final Agreement” with Iran.

Trump wrote that the Freedom Project “will be paused for a short period of time to see if the agreement can be completed and signed.”

Stock futures rose after Trump’s announcement, which raised hopes for a peace deal that would end the US-Israeli war in Iran and reopen the economically vital strait.

Trump announced Project Freedom on Sunday evening, saying the United States was assuring countries whose ships were stranded by war that it would “safely remove their ships from these restricted Waterways.”

The Trump administration said about 23,000 sailors on ships representing 87 countries were stranded in the Persian Gulf because Iran effectively closed the Strait of Hormuz.

US Central Command The military will deploy “guided missile destroyers, more than 100 land and seaplanes, multi-domain unmanned platforms, and 15,000 service members” to support Project Freedom, he said in a statement Sunday evening.

Iran responded to the Freedom Project with renewed hostility.

The United Arab Emirates said on Monday that it was attacked by ballistic missiles, cruise missiles and drones from Iran, resulting in three people being injured.

CENTCOM Commander Admiral Brad Cooper he told reporters The same day that Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps “launched numerous cruise missiles, drones and small boats at the ships we were protecting.”

A ship operated by South Korea also caught fire in the Strait of Hormuz on Monday. Trump later said Iran attacked.

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