Oil tankers anchored in the Strait of Hormuz near Bandar Abbas, Iran on May 2, 2026. Amirhosein Khorgooi/ISNA via AP Two days after United States Central Command launched Project Freedom , a naval operation to escort commercial vessels through the Strait of Hormuz, President Donald Trump paused the operation. Trump cited “great progress” toward a potential deal with Iran’s rulers as the reason. Yet that progress has proven elusive. While the pause may have been tactically convenient, it was a strategic mistake that sent the wrong message to Tehran. If the Trump administration is serious about restoring the free flow of international commerce illegally strangled by the Tehran regime since the start of hostilities, it should resume and sustain the operation until Iran agrees to unrestricted transit rights for all shipping through the Strait of Hormuz.…