Saudi Arabia refused to allow President Donald Trump to use Saudi air space or airbases for his “Project Freedom” to reopen the Strait of Hormuz, which Iran closed in the Persian Gulf as part of Trump’s ongoing war, two U.S. officials told NBC News:
Trump surprised Gulf allies by announcing “Project Freedom” on social media Sunday afternoon, the officials said, angering leadership in Saudi Arabia. In response, the Kingdom informed the U.S. it would not allow the U.S. military to fly aircraft from Prince Sultan Airbase southeast of Riyadh or fly through Saudi airspace to support the effort, the officials said.
A call between Trump and Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman did not resolve the issue, the two U.S. officials said, forcing the president to pause Project Freedom in order to restore U.S. military access to the critical airspace…
Trump had announced the operation over the weekend as a way to break Iran’s blockade in the Strait of Hormuz, and his top national security leaders spent much of Tuesday talking up the effort in public briefings at the Pentagon and White House, only to have the president suddenly halt the operation roughly 36 hours after it began.
(Source: NBC News)