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Trump Says He’s Weighing Return of Project Freedom, Claims Iran Sought Help Clearing Nuclear Debris

Source

Minseung Kang

Summary

Trump said he is reviewing whether to restart Project Freedom, an operation to support the evacuation of commercial vessels in the Strait of Hormuz.
The market is increasingly concerned about disruptions to global oil shipments as tensions in the Strait of Hormuz escalate, according to the report.
The report said recent US-Iran ceasefire talks have brought uranium control, international oil prices, and the potential for increased volatility in risk-asset markets into focus as key variables.

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President Donald Trump said he is weighing whether to restart Project Freedom, an operation intended to help commercial ships leave the Strait of Hormuz. He also claimed Iran asked the US to help remove radioactive material from damaged nuclear facilities.

Walter Bloomberg, an overseas market-news account, reported on May 11 that Trump made the remarks in an interview with Fox News.

Project Freedom is a maritime support operation aimed at moving civilian merchant vessels to safe areas after military clashes between the US and Iran left some ships stranded in the Strait of Hormuz or disrupted transit.

Trump did not disclose when the operation might resume or how broadly it would be carried out. Renewed tensions in the Strait of Hormuz have also heightened concern about disruptions to global oil shipments.

Trump said Iran raised the issue of dealing with debris from its nuclear facilities during negotiations with the US.

"Iran’s negotiating team said the United States should remove the ‘nuclear dust’ from the destroyed nuclear facilities," Trump said. "They said they do not have the technology to remove it."

He claimed the radioactive material remains inside nuclear facilities destroyed in US military strikes.

Uranium control and the handling of nuclear facilities have emerged as key issues in recent US-Iran ceasefire talks. A string of military and nuclear developments in the Middle East has also drawn attention to the risk of greater volatility in oil prices and risk assets.