AILSA CHANG, HOST:
In a major development, the U.S. military has launched an operation to end Iran's blockade of the Strait of Hormuz and reopen it to global shipping traffic. U.S. Admiral Brad Cooper, the head of the military's Central Command, said that the U.S. Navy came under fire, but it did manage to help two commercial ships pass through the strait safely today.
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BRAD COOPER: Iranian forces are strongly advised to remain well clear of U.S. assets and personnel operating in international waters in and near the Strait of Hormuz.
CHANG: Meanwhile, Iran reaffirmed that it will attack any ships that try to pass through the strait without its permission. For the latest, we're joined now by NPR national security correspondent Greg Myre and international affairs correspondent Jackie Northam. Hello to both of you.
GREG MYRE, BYLINE: Hi, Ailsa.
CHANG: Hi.
JACKIE NORTHAM, BYLINE: Hi, Ailsa.
CHANG: Hi. OK, Greg, let's start with you. President Trump announced what he called Project Freedom yesterday but didn't really provide any details. What did we learn today from the U.S. military?
MYRE: Yeah. We got a fair amount of detail on what looks like to be the U.S. response to the Iranian blockade, which began shortly after the war started two months ago. Admiral Brad Cooper, the head of Central Command, which is responsible for the Middle East, held a conference call with reporters. He said multiple U.S. Navy destroyers had passed through the strait, going into the Gulf itself and assisted these two U.S. flag commercial ships coming out. The commercial ships and the U.S. Navy ships faced attack from Iran.
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COOPER: Iran has launched multiple cruise missiles, drones and small boats at ships we are protecting. We have defeated each and every one of those threats through the clinical application of defensive munitions.
MYRE: And he said the U.S. forces and, specifically, helicopters sank the six Iranian small boats, and he described Iran's military as dramatically degraded. He said he's been through the strait perhaps a hundred times in his career. Normally, even in peacetime, he usually saw 20 or more Iranian small boats. Today, the U.S. Navy saw only six.
CHANG: OK. But Jackie, just hours after those ships reportedly got through the strait, the United Arab Emirates said that Iran had launched missiles at it, which breaks the ceasefire that's been in place since early April, right? What more do we know about those missiles?
NORTHAM: Well, the UAE's Ministry of Defence said it intercepted three cruise missiles that had been launched from Iran and that a fourth one fell into the sea. It said, you know, this was the first time it had deployed its air defenses since the ceasefire between the U.S., Israel and Iran was declared about a month ago. And, you know, there were also drone attacks on the UAE, and one of them sparked a fire at the key oil facility at Fujairah.
You know, Ailsa, it's hard to say exactly why Iran launched these attacks. But the timing, of course, suggests it has to do with the U.S. decision to launch this Project Freedom, you know, to try and open up the Strait of Hormuz, and as Greg says, the U.S. shooting down of some Iranian drones and missiles and attacking some smaller Iranian ships today. The UAE is an ally of the U.S. and supports it in the war against Iran, and these attacks on the UAE could be Iran's way of retaliating, you know, sending a shot across the bow to the U.S. Regardless of why Iran launched these attacks on the UAE, it does represent a real escalation of tensions again in the region and certainly a serious risk to the already shaky ceasefire.
CHANG: Indeed. Well, Greg, did the U.S. military say what we should expect from this operation in the coming days?
MYRE: Admiral Cooper was pretty clear that this is something that's going to be much larger. The intent here is to reopen the strait, even if Iran tries to prevent this. He said the military has set up what he called a defensive umbrella across the Strait of Hormuz.
CHANG: Defensive umbrella - what does that mean? Did he explain?
MYRE: Yeah, he said that what's going to happen here would be more than an escort of just one U.S. Navy ship protecting one commercial ship through the strait, and that it would include multiple navy ships which would seem to be positioned in or near the strait. In addition, there'll be helicopters, fighter jets, airborne early warning systems. So this is really intended as an entire system built for a steady stream of traffic. So the U.S. is prepared for Iranian attacks, but there's also the question of whether hundreds of commercial ships will go in and out of the Gulf in this kind of environment. Here's what Admiral Cooper said.
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COOPER: Over the last 12 hours, we've reached out to dozens of ships and shipping companies to encourage traffic flow through the strait. This news has been quite enthusiastically received, and we're already beginning to see movement.
MYRE: So for the past month, the ceasefire has been in place, the dueling U.S. and Iranian blockades have been in place. It's been tense but relatively quiet. Now we see the U.S. has been preparing for this operation to open the strait, and we got the first taste of it today.
CHANG: OK. But, Jackie, despite assurances from the U.S., what are shipping companies saying about whether they will risk their vessels under President Trump's plan?
NORTHAM: Right. Well, shipping companies and maritime organizations I contacted say they're really concerned about a lack of information about Project Freedom - you know, when he announced the plan, President Trump gave no details about how it will work - and especially as Iran has not signed on to the plan and is threatening to attack commercial vessels if they do try to transit the strait without its permission.
The International Transport Workers Federation, which represents seafarers and other workers, said in a statement to NPR that no seafarer or ship should be asked to transit the Strait of Hormuz without a full guarantee of safety. Hapag-Lloyd, which is one of the largest shipping companies in the world and which has several vessels stuck around the strait, said in a statement to NPR that it welcomes any initiative to improve the security situation but that its risk assessment remains the same and its ships are staying put. They are not going to try to get through the Strait of Hormuz.
And the International Maritime Association said naval escorts are not a sustainable solution and that de-escalation and a long-term agreement are the only way forward. So, you know, after this fighting in and around the Strait of Hormuz, you know, even today, it's hard to see many ships are willing to take the risk right now. But, you know, we'll see.
CHANG: Yeah. OK. Well, Greg, where does all of this leave the ceasefire?
MYRE: Well, it leaves it very much in doubt. Cooper was asked if the ceasefire was over. He declined to answer. He clearly wants to leave that for the politicians. He described the U.S. operation as defensive. It's helping ships go through the strait. But of course, the U.S. maintains its own blockade, and a blockade is considered an act of war. So hard to predict how this plays out, but it looks like we're entering a new phase. The U.S. is trying to actively break the Iranian blockade, and the Iranians are trying to keep it in place.
CHANG: That is NPR's Greg Myre and Jackie Northam. Thank you to both of you.
MYRE: Sure thing, Ailsa.
NORTHAM: Thank you. Transcript provided by NPR, Copyright NPR.
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