Trump halted ‘Project Freedom’ after Saudi Arabia withheld support

Donald Trump abruptly halted a US military plan to guide commercial ships through the Strait of Hormuz after Saudi Arabia told Washington it would not allow American warplanes to use its bases or airspace in the operation, according to people familiar with the matter.

Riyadh considered the US president’s plan — dubbed “Project Freedom” — to be “unnecessarily escalatory and not well thought through”, said one of the people briefed on the situation. The White House declined to comment.

The move from Saudi Arabia underscores frustrations over Trump’s management of the war among some of the US’s key Arab allies.

Trump said he was pausing the operation on Tuesday — just one day after it began — as he struggles to reopen the strategic waterway Tehran has all but closed since the US and Israel started the war on Iran on February 28.

The closure of the chokepoint has stymied oil and gas exports from the region, triggering the worst global energy crisis in decades.

Iran responded to the US’s effort to transit ships through the strait on Monday by firing more than a dozen missiles and drones at the United Arab Emirates. Most were intercepted but an oil facility in Fujairah was set ablaze.

Iranian forces also launched cruise missiles at US naval ships and merchant vessels, which American forces shot down. The regime also sent drones and fast-attack boats at commercial ships. The US said it shot down the drones and sank six small boats.

Trump played down the attacks, saying it was not “heavy firing” and that the US shot most of the projectiles down. The US said a fragile, month-long ceasefire with Iran remained in place.

He explained his sudden U-turn on Project Freedom by saying he made the decision after a request from Pakistan and “other countries”, in order to leave room for negotiations between Washington and Tehran.

Pakistani Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif, whose government is leading mediation efforts, on Wednesday thanked Trump for his decision. Sharif said it was made in response to a request by Islamabad and “other brotherly countries” including Saudi Arabia, namechecking Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman, the kingdom’s de facto leader.

Riyadh’s decision not to allow US warplanes to use its territory for Project Freedom was first reported by NBC News.

Saudi Arabia has become increasingly frustrated with Trump’s erratic handling of the war, during which Gulf states have borne the brunt of Iran’s retaliatory strikes.

It had joined other Arab states in cautioning Trump against going to war, urging the US to pursue a diplomatic solution to the situation over fears Iran would lash out at the US’s allies in the region.

Saudi Arabia has condemned Iran’s attacks on its Gulf neighbours, and initially saw benefit in the US and Israel degrading the Islamic republic’s missile and drone arsenal after the war began.

But Riyadh has become concerned about Trump’s unpredictability and lack of coherent goals. It was alarmed when Trump threatened to hit civilian infrastructure and destroy all of Iran’s power plants amid worries that would elicit a more ferocious response from the Islamic regime.

The kingdom has called for de-escalation and supported Pakistan’s efforts to mediate an agreement to end the war and reopen the Strait of Hormuz.

Additional reporting by Abigail Hauslohner