Trump has suspended Project Liberty in the Strait of Hormuz

US President Donald Trump said he is suspending Project Liberty, an operation to help merchant ships blocked in the Persian Gulf by the closure of the Strait of Hormuz. He said the decision was made in part because of "significant progress" in working out an agreement to end the war with Iran.

"Project Freedom (passage of ships through the Strait of Hormuz) will be suspended for a short period to see if an agreement can be finalized and signed," Trump wrote on Truth Social on the night of May 6.

The blockade of Iranian ports by U.S. Navy ships will continue, Trump emphasized.

Futures on the technology sector index Nasdaq Composite rose by 0.9%, on blue chips Dow Jones Industrial Average and on the broad market index S&P 500 - by 0.2-0.4%. During the main session on Ma 5, the S&P 500 and Nasdaq Composite stock indices rose to record highs.

Trump's statement bolstered investor hopes for a peace agreement that would end the U.S.-Israeli war in Iran and unblock the critical Strait of Hormuz for commodities markets, CNBC noted.

The US announced the suspension of the operation in the Strait of Hormuz just a day after it began. Trump presented "Project Liberty" as a humanitarian mission to facilitate the delivery of energy and other supplies through the strait, which has been mostly blocked since late February because of the war.

As part of the operation, the U.S. was supposed to help merchant ships from neutral countries leave the Persian Gulf, where they were blocked due to the war. The U.S. said the closure of the strait has prevented more than 1,550 commercial vessels with about 22,000 sailors on board from leaving the region.

The operation provoked a response from Iran, posing a serious challenge to the fragile ceasefire between the U.S. and Iran, Bloomberg writes. The United Arab Emirates on Ma. 5 said it intercepted Iranian missiles and drones for the first time in nearly a month. The U.S. military also repelled attacks by Iranian drones, missiles and armed small boats, ensuring the passage of two U.S.-flagged vessels through the strait.

This article was AI-translated and verified by a human editor