Jauhn Etienne Villaruel

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<div><span class="fr-img-caption fr-fic fr-dib" style="width:960px;display:block" width="960"><span class="fr-img-wrap"><img src="https://od2-image-api.abs-cbn.com/prod/editorImage/17780320186651776435480474AFP__20260304__99WD7EN__v1__HighRes__IranIsraelUsConflictTransport (1).webp" style="width:960px" class="fr-fic fr-dib" width="960"/><span class="fr-inner" style="text-align:left">A person points at a page on the Marinetraffic website that shows commercial boats traffic on the edge of the Strait of Hormuz near the Iranian coast, in Paris on March 4, 2026. <em>Photo by Julien De Rosa/AFP</em><br/></span></span></span></div><p>WASHINGTON, United States — The US will pause escorting commercial ships through the Strait of Hormuz barely a day after it began doing so, US President Donald Trump said Tuesday, citing a desire to reach a peace deal with Iran.</p><p>Despite an uptick in military activity in recent days, Trump said &quot;great progress has been made&quot; toward a deal with Tehran and that the ship-guiding operation &quot;will be paused for a short period of time to see whether or not the Agreement can be finalized and signed.&quot;</p><p>The announcement came hours after Secretary of State Marco Rubio said the United States had completed its offensive operations against Iran, while withholding the right to unleash a &quot;devastating&quot; response to any new attacks on shipping in the narrow shipping lanes.</p><p>Rubio echoed Washington&#x27;s top military officer who earlier in the day said that US forces were ready to resume combat operations if ordered.</p><p>And Trump added that the blockade of Iranian ports &quot;will remain in full force and effect.&quot;</p><p>As these announcements were made in Washington, Iranian media reported that Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi arrived in Beijing, where he will on Wednesday meet his Chinese counterpart, Wang Yi.</p><p>The US military escorts over the last day and a half -- dubbed &quot;Project Freedom&quot; by Trump -- drew Iranian attacks, threatening an already fragile ceasefire.</p><p>Iran&#x27;s Revolutionary Guards navy warned of a &quot;firm response&quot; if ships deviated from its approved route through the strait, as the country&#x27;s chief negotiator said Tehran &quot;had not even started yet,&quot; following a spate of attacks in the crucial trade route.</p><p>The United Arab Emirates announced it was intercepting a barrage of missiles and drones from Iran for a second day -- a claim Tehran &quot;categorically&quot; denied.</p><p>&quot;The armed forces...did not launch any missile or drone operation,&quot; Iran&#x27;s Khatam al-Anbiya command said.</p><p>Iran fired missiles and drones at US forces on Monday, while Washington said it struck six Iranian boats it accused of threatening commercial shipping, in the sharpest escalation since a month-long truce.</p><p>US Central Command remains &quot;ready to resume major combat operations...if ordered,&quot; General Dan Caine told reporters.</p><p>&quot;No adversary should mistake our current restraint with a lack of resolve.&quot;</p><p>Trump earlier Tuesday urged Iran to &quot;do the smart thing&quot; and make a deal, saying he did not want to kill more Iranians even as the ceasefire teetered.</p><p>Pentagon chief Pete Hegseth had said the United States was &quot;not looking for a fight&quot; but warned attacks would face &quot;overwhelming and devastating&quot; force.</p><div><br/></div><div><strong>&#x27;MALIGN PRESENCE&#x27; </strong></div><div><br/></div><p>Iran&#x27;s parliament speaker Mohammad Bagher Ghalibaf said the status quo was &quot;intolerable,&quot; warning the US &quot;malign presence will diminish&quot; as Tehran vowed to retain control of Hormuz.</p><p>Monday&#x27;s exchange of fire came as the rivals enforced dueling maritime blockades following Trump&#x27;s plan to guide ships out of the Gulf.</p><p>The war, sparked more than two months ago by US-Israeli strikes, has battered the global economy despite a weeks-long ceasefire.</p><p>Israel&#x27;s air force chief Omer Tischler said the military was ready to &quot;deploy the entire air force eastward if required.&quot;</p><p>Military chief Eyal Zamir added that Israel&#x27;s army remained on &quot;high alert&quot; and ready to respond to threats in the Gulf.</p><p>Iran denied any naval losses but accused Washington of killing five civilians aboard boats.</p><p>Despite tensions, Danish freight giant Maersk said one of its ships had transited Hormuz under US escort.</p><p>The UAE called the attacks &quot;a dangerous escalation,&quot; while Saudi Arabia urged efforts toward a political solution.</p><p>Rubio accused Iran of &quot;holding the world&#x27;s economy hostage&quot; through threats to shipping and the laying of sea mines, and said Washington and Gulf allies had drafted a UN Security Council resolution demanding Tehran halt attacks and disclose the location of mines.</p><p>The proposed measure would also require Iran to end efforts to charge tolls in the strait and support a humanitarian corridor, with a vote expected in the coming days, Rubio said.</p><p>European and US stocks advanced Tuesday while fears that the ceasefire could fall apart weighed on Asian equities.</p><p>Talks remain deadlocked, with only one round of direct negotiations so far.</p><p>Iran&#x27;s President Masoud Pezeshkian said Tehran remained open to dialogue, but rejected US &quot;maximum pressure&quot; demands as &quot;impossible.&quot;</p><p>Elevated energy costs are adding to economic strain and creating a political headache for Trump ahead of midterm elections.</p><p>European allies warned prolonged disruption would hit their economies.</p><p>&quot;These attacks are unacceptable,&quot; EU chief Ursula von der Leyen said on X, warning that Gulf security has &quot;direct consequences for Europe.&quot;</p><p>German Chancellor Friedrich Merz urged Iran to return to talks, echoing calls from the leaders of France and Britain.</p><div><br/></div><div><strong>© Agence France-Presse</strong></div><div><br/></div><div><br/></div><div><strong>RELATED VIDEOS</strong></div><div><strong><br/><span class="fr-video fr-deletable fr-fvc fr-dvb fr-draggable" contenteditable="false" draggable="true"><iframe width="640" height="360" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/iM046fTNw4k?&amp;wmode=opaque&amp;rel=0" frameBorder="0" allowfullscreen="" class="fr-draggable"></iframe></span><span class="fr-video fr-deletable fr-fvc fr-dvb fr-draggable" contenteditable="false" draggable="true"><iframe width="640" height="360" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/bz44L5ksiiM?&amp;wmode=opaque&amp;rel=0" frameBorder="0" allowfullscreen="" class="fr-draggable"></iframe></span><span class="fr-video fr-deletable fr-fvc fr-dvb fr-draggable" contenteditable="false" draggable="true"><iframe width="640" height="360" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/dEQaD3Dmg-Q?&amp;wmode=opaque&amp;rel=0" frameBorder="0" allowfullscreen="" class="fr-draggable"></iframe></span><span class="fr-video fr-deletable fr-fvc fr-dvb fr-draggable" contenteditable="false" draggable="true"><iframe width="640" height="360" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/OHBANiayM54?&amp;wmode=opaque&amp;rel=0" frameBorder="0" allowfullscreen="" class="fr-draggable"></iframe></span></strong><br/></div>

<p>The US will pause escorting commercial ships through the Strait of Hormuz barely a day after it began doing so, US President Donald Trump said Tuesday, citing a desire to reach a peace deal with Iran.</p>

The US will pause escorting commercial ships through the Strait of Hormuz barely a day after it began doing so, US President Donald Trump said Tuesday, citing a desire to reach a peace deal with Iran.

US pauses Hormuz escorts in bid for deal, as threats continue

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US pauses Hormuz escorts in bid for deal, as threats continue

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Tehran and Dubai

Published May 06, 2026 09:51 AM PHT

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