The U.S. escorted a ship through the Strait of Hormuz

“Alliance Fairfax, a U.S.-flagged vehicle carrier, transited the Strait of Hormuz and exited the Persian Gulf on May 4,” the company said in a statement released to AFP. Following the outbreak of war on February 28 between the United States and Israel on one side and Iran on the other, the ship had been stranded in the Persian Gulf. According to Iran International, the U.S. military offered the opportunity to leave the Middle East under armed escort.

On Saturday, Donald Trump announced the imminent launch of Project Freedom, an operation aimed at escorting commercial vessels through the Strait of Hormuz. The first escorts coordinated by the U.S. Navy began on May 4. In response to Trump’s decision, oil prices fell. The Emirati daily Gulf News assessed that the decline was driven more by market expectations than by any actual improvement in the regional situation.

“Markets are reacting to the mere prospect of ships moving again, but the system won’t reset overnight. We should expect a real shock from delays,” noted Nigel Green, CEO of deVere Group, a firm specialising in cross-border financial advisory.

Iran had warned the United States against approaching the strait. On May 4, Iran’s semi-official Fars News Agency reported that an American vessel had been struck by two missiles. The U.S. side denied the reports, stating that “no U.S. vessel has been hit.”