Trump’s Free Plan Suddenly Halted in an Emergency! Ally Saudi Arabia Furious, Accuses It of “Not Notifying in Advance,” Refuses to Open Airspace

Trump announces a pause to the “Project Freedom” escort mission. Saudi Arabia refuses to let the U.S. military use its bases and airspace, causing the operation to stall due to a lack of regional support.

The escort mission for the Strait of Hormuz—“Project Freedom”—announced by U.S. President Trump has been abruptly called off less than two days after it was launched. Two U.S. officials said the reason is that a key ally, Saudi Arabia, refused to allow U.S. forces to use its military bases and airspace, forcing Trump to temporarily suspend the escort operation for now.

Trump’s “sudden announcement” angers allies; Saudi Arabia shuts its airspace, triggering a crisis

According to NBC, Trump announced “Project Freedom” on social media last weekend, aiming to use military aircraft to escort merchant ships and help them break through Iran’s blockade of the Strait of Hormuz. However, it appears he did not adequately inform the Gulf allies in advance, prompting strong displeasure among Saudi Arabia’s top officials. The Saudi side notified the U.S., banning U.S. forces from using the Prince Sultan Air Base southeast of Riyadh and also not allowing flights over its airspace to support the operation.

Even though Trump later held an emergency call with Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman, the disagreement could not be resolved, and he was ultimately forced to announce a suspension of the plan.

Qatar, Oman, and other Gulf allies were likewise not informed. One Omani diplomat revealed that the U.S. came to coordinate only after announcing the plan: “The U.S. announced first and then communicated with us, but we did not feel angry because of it.” In response, the White House insisted that “regional allies were notified in advance.”

Is the U.S. deployment to the Middle East actually being hamstrung? Allies’ airspace and bases become key

This incident highlights the real predicament faced by U.S. military operations in the Middle East that are highly dependent on regional allies. Geographically, Saudi Arabia and Jordan are critical bases for fighter takeoff and landing, Kuwait provides an overflight corridor that cannot be bypassed, and Oman plays a dual role—both granting overflight permissions and providing naval logistics support.

A U.S. official said that without these permissions, U.S. fighter jets would be unable to provide an air-defense “umbrella” for ships passing through the strait: “Because of geographic factors, you have to obtain the cooperation of regional partners to use their airspace along their borders—basically there is no other way.”

When the plan was called off, two U.S.-flagged ships had already successfully passed through the strait, while several other vessels were assembling in the Persian Gulf and waiting for orders.

At a key moment in ceasefire talks, Trump pushes ahead with an agreement before the “Trump-Xi meeting”

On Wednesday, Trump said on Truth Social that “Project Freedom” will be paused for a period of time, pending whether the U.S.-Iran agreement can be completed and signed. He also emphasized through the White House that “the negotiations over the past 24 hours went very smoothly,” and that Iran “is willing to reach an agreement.” He further told PBS that an agreement could be reached before his trip to Beijing next week to meet with Xi Jinping.

An Iranian Foreign Ministry spokesperson confirmed that Tehran is reviewing the latest U.S. peace proposal and will discuss it further via an intermediary, Pakistan. Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi also personally visited Tehran this week, urging that a comprehensive ceasefire be reached as soon as possible.

Midterm election pressure intensifies; peace talks are key to Republicans holding seats

With this year’s November midterm elections still counting down, Republicans need to hold their slim majority in the House and their majority seats in the Senate, but the war that has dragged on is becoming a political burden. A Jordanian official noted that Iran’s economic hardship may be the most tangible force pushing the negotiations: “Iran doesn’t have the economic capacity to keep going; their economy is collapsing, and they can’t even pay salaries.”

At present, U.S. forces in the Gulf region are substantial, including two aircraft carrier strike groups, far exceeding the levels at the outbreak of the war on February 28 this year. The escort mission under “Project Freedom” and the bombing operation during the same period, “Epic Fury,” belong to different operational systems—the latter has continued since the initial strikes.

As signs of progress emerged in U.S.-Iran peace talks, global financial markets immediately saw broad gains. Oil prices fell by more than 7% in a single day, the largest single-day drop in recent months; the three major U.S. stock indexes set new all-time highs again; and the cryptocurrency market also benefited, with Bitcoin topping out at $82,850.

• This article is reprinted with authorization from: 《Chain News》
• Original title: 《Trump’s “Project Freedom” Forced to Be Halted! Allies Saudi Arabia Furious, Refuse to Open Airspace: No Prior Notice》
• Original author: Crumax