Pentagon Pushes Hormuz Return, But Shipping Still Confined to High-Risk Corridor

The Pentagon is pushing to reopen the Strait of Hormuz and restore the flow of commerce through ‘Project Freedom,’ but the operation currently involves limited, one-off extractions of stranded vessels via a high-risk corridor. The maritime risk level remains ‘critical,’ necessitating ships to transit through a southern route under U.S. military escort, bypassing established shipping lanes due to unexploded mines.