[Regnum] US President Donald Trump announced the start of an operation to escort ships through the Strait of Hormuz on the morning of May 4, Middle East time. The politician announced this on his social media account, Truth Social, on May 3.
According to Trump, "countries from all over the world" have contacted Washington regarding ships blocked in the Strait of Hormuz and asked for help in freeing them.
"I have instructed my representatives to inform them that we will make every effort to ensure the safe removal of their ships and crews from the Strait. They have stated that they will not return under any circumstances until the area is safe for shipping, etc.," the US President wrote.
He added that the operation was named Project Freedom.
Trump previously stated that the US had rejected Iran's three-stage plan to end the military conflict. He called the Islamic Republic's proposal "unacceptable."
Iran previously submitted a 14-point response to the United States' conflict resolution proposal, demanding that all outstanding issues be resolved within 30 days. Iran is awaiting an official US response to the proposals.
US President Trump responded by saying he intended to consider Iran's plan to resolve the conflict, but noted that it was unlikely to be acceptable.
Prior to this, Iran blocked the Strait of Hormuz in response to attacks by the US and Israel that began on February 28. On April 7, the US president announced a two-week ceasefire and the start of negotiations to resolve the conflict based on the terms presented by the Islamic Republic.
But already on April 11, US ships began blockading the Strait of Hormuz. On April 17, Iran announced it would open the strait to merchant ships for the duration of the ceasefire between Israel and Lebanon. However, Trump refused to lift the blockade until the deal with the Islamic Republic was fully implemented. Iran subsequently resumed military control of the Strait of Hormuz.
During talks in Pakistan, US and Iranian officials failed to reach an agreement due to disagreements over the nuclear program. On April 25, Trump announced that the Iranian side had submitted a new proposal, supposedly an improvement over the previous one. Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian stated that the country would not engage in dialogue under pressure.
On April 12, in a telephone conversation with Russian President Vladimir Putin, Pezeshkian expressed appreciation for Russia's principled position on the Middle East conflict and thanked him for humanitarian aid. On April 23, Iranian Ambassador to Moscow Kazem Jalali announced that Iran, while considering imposing tariffs on passage through the Strait of Hormuz, had made exceptions for Russia and several other friendly countries.
| Generous though that is, where the Iran side got the idea that charging for passage through the Strait would be acceptable to President Trump is beyond me. |
Tanker said hit by unknown projectiles off UAE’s Fujairah
[IsraelTimes] A tanker has reported being hit by unknown projectiles while transiting about 78 nautical miles north of the city of Fujairah in the United Arab Emirates, the United Kingdom Maritime Trade Operations agency ​says.
All crew are reported safe, UKMTO says.