Iran Has Chilly Response to Trump's 'Project Freedom'

Iran is telling ships to stay put in one of the world's most critical waterways, setting up a direct clash with President Trump's new plan to move them. A senior Iranian commander on Monday warned that any foreign forces—"especially the aggressive US military"—and any commercial vessels trying to approach, enter, or pass through the Strait of Hormuz without Tehran's signoff would be "targeted and attacked," according to state media.

The threat came a day after Trump announced "Project Freedom," a US effort to help free commercial ships stuck there amid the war with Iran. US Central Command says the operation will involve guided-missile destroyers, more than 100 aircraft, unmanned systems, and 15,000 troops. The Wall Street Journal, citing two US officials, describes "Project Freedom" as "effectively a coordination cell to move traffic through the Strait, involving countries, insurance companies, and shipping organizations ... It doesn't currently involve US Navy warships escorting vessels through the strait." They say it will also involve the US detecting the location of mines in the strait and conveying that information to ships.

Jennifer Parker, a nonresident fellow at the Lowy Institute, tells CNN, "This appears to be an operation … which is less about providing direct protection to a vessel or a couple of vessels and more about trying to change the situation in the strait" so ships "feel safe." In the New York Times' view, "If Mr. Trump's gambit works, it could remove a major source of Iranian leverage in the negotiations. But it is unclear whether commercial ships feel secure enough to risk the voyage." Trump said the effort would begin Monday morning Middle East time.