Trump threatens 'Project Freedom Plus' if Iran deal not sealed

US President Donald Trump warned that Washington may escalate its military posture in the Strait of Hormuz if a deal with Iran is not finalised, threatening to revive and expand the paused "Project Freedom" operation.

"We'll go a different route if everything doesn't get signed up, buttoned up," Trump told reporters at the White House.

When asked whether the US would return to "Project Freedom," Trump responded, "I don’t think so," but added that it still "might do it."

He explained that Pakistan, which is mediating talks between Washington and Tehran, asked the US not to resume the military operation.

"We may go back to Project Freedom if things don't happen," he said. "It’ll be Project Freedom Plus, meaning Project Freedom plus other things," without elaborating on what additional measures the expanded operation would entail.

Regional tensions have escalated since the US and Israel launched strikes against Iran on Feb. 28, triggering retaliation from Tehran against Israel as well as US allies in the Gulf, along with the closure of the Strait of Hormuz.

Tehran could withstand blockade for four months, CIA report shows, as fighting flares

Efforts to end the war between the US and Iran appeared to stall as the two sides traded ​fire in the Gulf on Friday, while a US intelligence analysis concluded Tehran could withstand a naval blockade for months.

A CIA assessment indicated that Iran would not ‌suffer severe economic pressure from a US blockade of Iranian ports for about another four months, according to a US official familiar with the matter, suggesting that US leverage over Tehran remains limited as the two sides seek to end a conflict that has been unpopular with US voters.

The Washington Post first reported the assessment.

A senior intelligence official called the “claims” about the CIA analysis “false,” saying the blockade "is inflicting real, compounding damage - severing trade, crushing revenue, and ​accelerating systemic economic collapse."

Recent days have seen the biggest flare-ups in fighting in and around the Strait of Hormuz since a ceasefire began a month ago, and the United Arab ​Emirates came under renewed attack on Friday.

Washington is awaiting Tehran's response to a US proposal that would formally end the war before talks on more ⁠contentious issues, including Iran's nuclear program.

"We should know something today," US Secretary of State Marco Rubio told reporters in Rome earlier in the day. "We're expecting a response from them."

Iran's foreign ministry spokesperson said ​Tehran was still weighing its response, and none was reported by mid-afternoon in Washington, just before midnight in Tehran.

Sporadic clashes in Strait

Meanwhile, more sporadic clashes between Iranian forces and US vessels took place ​in the Strait of Hormuz, Iran's semi-official Fars news agency reported. The Tasnim news agency later cited an Iranian military source saying the situation had calmed, but warned more clashes were possible.

The US military said it struck two Iran-linked vessels attempting to enter an Iranian port, with a US fighter jet hitting their smokestacks and forcing them to turn back.

Iran has largely blocked non-Iranian shipping through the strait since the war began with joint US-Israeli ​airstrikes across Iran on February 28, the first of which killed over a 100 children in a strike on a girls' school in Minab. The US imposed a blockade on Iranian vessels last month.

Oil prices rose, with Brent crude futures above $101 a barrel, though still down more than 6% for the week.

Trump ​said on Thursday the ceasefire was still holding despite the flare-ups in the strait, which, before the war, handled one-fifth of the world's oil supply.

The confrontation extended beyond the waterway. The United Arab Emirates said its ‌air defences ⁠engaged with two ballistic missiles and three drones from Iran on Friday, with three people sustaining moderate injuries.

During the war, Iran has repeatedly targeted the UAE and other Gulf states that host US military bases. In what the UAE called a "major escalation", Iran stepped up attacks this week in response to Trump's announcement of "Project Freedom" to escort ships in the strait, which he paused after 48 hours.

Iran accuses US of breaching truce

Iran accused the US of breaching the ceasefire, which had largely held since it was announced on April 7 but has come under strain this week.

"Every time a diplomatic solution ​is on the table, the US opts for ​a reckless military adventure," Foreign Minister Abbas ⁠Araqchi said on Friday. Iran's Mehr news agency reported that one crew member was killed, 10 wounded, and four missing after a US Navy attack on an Iranian commercial ship late on Thursday.

After meeting with Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni, Rubio questioned why Italy and other allies were not backing ​Washington's efforts to reopen the strait.

"Are you going to normalise a country claiming to control an international waterway? Because if you normalise that, you've set ​a precedent that's going to ⁠get repeated in a dozen other places," he said.

US imposes sanctions

The US Treasury on Friday announced sanctions against 10 individuals and companies, including several in China and Hong Kong, for aiding efforts by Iran's military to secure weapons and raw materials used to build Tehran's Shahed drones.

Treasury said in a statement it remains ready to take economic action against ⁠Iran's military ​industrial base so Tehran cannot reconstitute its production capacity and project power abroad.

It also said it was prepared to act against ​any foreign company supporting illicit Iranian commerce and could impose secondary sanctions on foreign financial institutions including those connected to China's independent "teapot" oil refineries.

The announcement came days before Trump plans to travel to China for a meeting with President Xi Jinping.