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Trump To Pause U.S. Effort To Guide Ships Through Hormuz. Aired 4-4:30a ET

Aired May 06, 2026 - 04:00   ET

THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.

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POLO SANDOVAL, CNN ANCHOR: Hey, everybody, welcome to CNN NEWSROOM. I'm Polo Sandoval live in New York.

And here's what's coming your way. Donald Trump pauses Project Freedom in hopes of finalizing a peace agreement with Iran. Plus, big wins for President Trump in the Indiana primaries. A look at election results in the Hoosier State and also in Ohio. And a little later, sampling dishes from all over the world without even leaving the state, step into New York City's cuisine melting pot.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Live from New York, this is CNN NEWSROOM with Polo Sandoval.

SANDOVAL: And as you can imagine, we do want to begin in the Middle East where the White House appears to be shifting its strategy as it works to strike a deal with Iran. President Donald Trump says that Project Freedom, that effort to guide ships through the Strait of Hormuz that was put into effect just a couple of days ago, well, it's now been put on pause, according to the president. And Iranian state media is calling that pause a, quote, U.S. failure to achieve its objectives. Meanwhile, Washington's top diplomat says that combat operations against Tehran have concluded. U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio insisting that Iranian control over the Strait of Hormuz should not be normalized and that the waterway should operate as it did before the war.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

MARCO RUBIO, U.S. SECRETARY OF STATE: The primary responsibility for this Project Freedom is on the United States because we're the only country that can project power in that part of the world the way we're doing now. We're the only ones that can do it, and we're going to do it as a favor to the world. Understand this, this is a favor to the world because it's their ships that are stranded. It's their fuel supplies that are stranded.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

SANDOVAL: And despite both sides trading shots earlier this week on the Strait of Hormuz, the fragile ceasefire between the U.S. and Iran appears to be holding. Here's what the head of the U.S. Defense Department had to say.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

PETE HEGSETH, U.S. DEFENSE SECRETARY: No, the ceasefire is not over. Ultimately, this is a separate and distinct project. And we expected there would be some churn at the beginning which happened. And we said we would defend and defend aggressively and we absolutely have. Iran knows that.

And ultimately the president's going to make a decision whether anything were to escalate into a violation of a ceasefire.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

SANDOVAL: All right, let's go now to CNN's Paula Hancocks who's live in Abu Dhabi.

Well, Paula, that was quick. That was initially announced just a couple of days ago, this Project Freedom to guide ships, hoping to reassure shipping companies. With that gone, how else could some of these companies get any guarantees about security?

PAULA HANCOCKS, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Well, Polo, it was -- it was very quick. I mean, it was Sunday Evening when the U.S. president announced this idea of Project Freedom. It came into effect on Monday morning. There was around 36 hours of escalation between the U.S. and Iran. And then Tuesday afternoon, Washington time is when the U.S. president decided to pause this process.

It was a process that officials say was trying to reassure vessels that they would be able to go across the Strait of Hormuz without being attacked effectively with the U.S. military protection that they were going to put into place, some significant amount of military arsenal. But we did see that the U.S. and Iran were trading fire. We also saw Iran firing missiles and drones towards the UAE and also to Amman. So there was an escalation of, of hostilities due to this.

So at this point what we've heard from the U.S. president is the reason that he is postponing and pausing this plan is because he wants to give the diplomatic path a chance. He has said it will be paused to see whether or not the agreement can be finalized and signed. Now he said it was mutually agreed, suggesting that Iran also agreed that this should be paused. And of course the U.S. naval blockade is still in place. But what we have heard publicly from Iran is that Trump has backed down.

One state media, I'll read you part of what they said, calling it, "The U.S. failure to achieve its objectives in the so called Freedom Project, following firm positions and warnings from Iran." Now of course, there is always a battle of narratives when it comes to any conflict. This could be what we're seeing here. We know from mediators that there is intense diplomacy ongoing. We know Pakistan is still working to bring the two sides closer together for an ultimate deal.

[04:05:18] So the hope is that this will maybe create some space in order to be able to do that. But certainly the mixed messaging from the White House was significant. We had heard just hours before the U.S. president announced this, the U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio touting the -- this freedom of navigation effort, saying this is where the focus is going to be. And as you say, we also had the secretary of defense talking about it as well.

So it's certainly a fast turnaround from the Trump administration. We also know that the foreign minister, Abbas Araghchi, has been in China meeting his counterpart. A Chinese readout saying that they believe Iran has the legitimate right to peaceful use of nuclear energy, pushing both sides back to the negotiating table, saying that they hope the Strait of Hormuz will be open very soon. Polo.

SANDOVAL: CNN's Paula Hancocks with that live report from Abu Dhabi. Thank you, Paula.

For more on this and more, we do want to now shift the conversation over to Ali Fathollah-Nejad, founder and director of the Center for Middle East and Global Order. He joins me from Switzerland.

Ali, welcome back to CNN. Thank you so much for joining us.

ALI FATHOLLAH-NEJAD, FOUNDER & DIRECTOR, CENTER FOR MIDDLE EAST & GLOBAL ORDER: Thanks for having me.

SANDOVAL: Let's pick up on some of that reporting that was coming from my colleague in terms of how this was, according to the president, mutually agreed to. Of course, I'm referring to the pause in Operation Freedom. I mean, what do you make of that? Is it -- is it fair to assume that there's obviously some sort of back channeling in these conversations that are still ongoing between the U.S. and Iran?

FATHOLLAH-NEJAD: Yes, exactly. So we can surely assume that. And we can also see it was also mentioned by our colleague that we've seen some escalation over the past few days as a consequence also of the U.S. efforts to escort ships out of the Strait of Hormuz, which has been a thorn in the flesh of the Iranians because after all the U.S. naval blockade is imposing a heavy cost on them because of, you know, lacking oil exports. And the Iranians have reacted quite strongly in targeting the UAE's Fujairah Oil Terminal, which is absolutely key, which provides the UAE with a -- with a way to bypass the Strait of Hormuz to export oil. So this kind of escalation over the past few days has actually also shown to both sides that maybe some kind of diplomatic arrangement may be in their respective interests.

SANDOVAL: And of course, the situation, as you know, in the Strait of Hormuz has been anything but calm and secure with these sort of residual actions that we've seen, these shots that have been exchanged. I want you to listen to General Dan Caine who's the chairman of the Joint Chiefs as he offered an update from the Pentagon on the acts of aggression from Iran since that ceasefire went into effect, and then we'll discuss.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP) GEN. DAN CAINE, CHAIRMAN OF THE JOINT CHIEFS OF STAFF: Since the ceasefire was announced, Iran has fired at commercial vessels nine times and seized two container ships and they've attacked U.S. forces more than 10 times, all below the threshold of restarting major combat operations at this point.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

SANDOVAL: So clearly it is a significant list of aggressions. And because of that, I just curious, in your analysis, why do you think that the White House that President Donald Trump has really shown some restraint in terms of not restarting its bombardment of Iran because of everything you just heard?

FATHOLLAH-NEJAD: Yes. I think from the U.S. perspective on one hand the U.S. naval blockade on Iran turns out to be quite successful as it is impeding the Iranians ability to export oil. Eighty percent of Iran's oil go -- has to go through the Strait of Hormuz, 90 percent of which reach China. So this is imposing heavy costs on the Iranian economy which is in deep crisis anyways. Iran is losing perhaps 400 or $5 billion per day.

On the other hand, there are also a lot of costs associated with continuing the conflict and the, you know, economic costs that are imposed on the Trump administration, be it via fuel prices in the United States or the GCC countries pressure to find a solution and to find an end to the conflict in the Strait of Hormuz. So there are, you know, economic costs that are piling up. And, you know, for now it seems that the U.S. can, you know, can negotiate with the Iranians on a broader basis that was assumed prior to that because last week we saw that, according to reports, Iranians have revisited and revised their proposal to the United States.

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SANDOVAL: I have a few seconds with you, Ali. Obviously, the two priorities right now, aside from the nuclear stockpile, is to restore security on the street of Hormuz put, but also restore confidence for shipping companies. With this mission on pause from the White House, how does the U.S. government do that?

FATHOLLAH-NEJAD: Well, exactly. I mean, the nuclear issue has been tabled again, according to those reports, by the Iranians. So the revised proposal also talks about the nuclear issue. It remains to be seen whether Iran's, you know, willingness to give concessions on that front are enough. But the other major point is that both sides are interested to reopen the Strait of Hormuz, but that everything going to be normalized very soon.

So I guess that despite a temporary arrangement between Iran and the United States, we're going to have uncertainty down the way because we also have a lot of other issues to talk to the Iranians. So and there is the Israel factor. There is the ballistic missile factor. There is Iran's constant ability to again restart disruption in the Strait of Hormuz through one single shot, be it a missile or a drone attack. So things are going to be still volatile, I fear. SANDOVAL: Ali Fathollah-Nejad joining us from Switzerland, pleasure having you on. Thank you.

FATHOLLAH-NEJAD: Thank you.

SANDOVAL: Pope Leo XIV pushing back against fresh criticism from Donald Trump. On Monday, the U.S. president claimed that the pontiff thinks that it's just fine for Iran to have a nuclear weapon. Well, the thing is, the pope has never said that, but he has repeatedly expressed his opposition to the war with Iran. And on Tuesday, he said that the mission of the Catholic Church is to preach the gospel and peace.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

POPE LEO XIV (through translator): If anyone wants to criticize me for proclaiming the gospel, let them do so with the truth. The church has spoken out against all nuclear weapons for years, so there is no doubt. I simply hope to be heard because of the value of God's word.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

SANDOVAL: U.S. secretary of State Marco Rubio will be meeting with the pope on Thursday. He says that there's a lot to talk about, including U.S. humanitarian aid to crisis hit Cuba through the Catholic Church. But he denies that he's on a mission to improve relations with the Vatican after Trump's attacks.

All right, let's go to politics now. President Trump is celebrating a string of wins in Indiana's state elections. He vowed vengeance -- revenge, I should say, against incumbent Republicans who opposed his redistricting plan for the Hoosier State. Here's CNN Jeff Zeleny.

JEFF ZELENY, CNN CHIEF NATIONAL AFFAIRS CORRESPONDENT: President Trump has talked a lot about retribution and revenge. That is exactly what he got on Tuesday night in those Indiana state Senate races. Of course, this was all about the redistricting war that started last year. And Indiana really stood apart with Republicans in the Indiana state Senate last December saying no, they would not really adhere to the White House's wishes and redraw their state lines.

Well, on Tuesday night, during a pair a set of Indiana Senate primaries, the Trump backed candidates, the White House backed candidates, overwhelmingly won at least five Trump backed candidates prevailed on Tuesday night. One is too close to call and one failed. But it was clear that President Trump's party, he still controls the lion's share of what it does.

Now, these local races in Indiana were really nationalized. Millions of dollars of television ads were spent on these local candidates. And many of the Republican state senators some of us have served 15 years, 18 years, 20 years were voted out by these new Trump backed candidates. Now, there's no doubt that this was a bit of a referendum on the president's popularity. Indiana, of course, a deep red state, but it did send a message to Republicans everywhere that President Trump still has sway within his parties. Now, the results on Tuesday night certainly are going to be closely watched in other primaries coming up in the month of May in Kentucky, in Louisiana, other Republicans who have defied the president are on the ballot. But for Tuesday night at least, President Trump was watching that scorecard and he won big in Indiana.

Jeff Zeleny, CNN, Washington.

SANDOVAL: And now to Ohio, where the matchup is set for U.S. House seats that could help determine which party controls the U.S. Congress. CNN projecting state Representative Derek Merrin will be winning the Republican primary. He will face incumbent Democrat Marcy Kaptur, who beat him by less than 1 percentage point in 2024.

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And CNN projecting that Sherrod Brown will be winning the Democratic Senate primary and also take on incumbent Republican John Husted in November. And CNN projecting that former U.S. presidential candidate Vivek Ramaswamy will be winning the Republican primary for governor. He's expected to face Democrat Amy Acton, Ohio's former health director.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

VIVEK RAMASWAMY, REPUBLICAN NOMINEE FOR OHIO GOVERNOR: I will never quit on Ohio. We will always do the work required to make the best decisions required to deliver you lower costs, bigger paychecks, better schools. To deliver you a revival of that American dream that I know exists, that American dream that I have lived in this state, that we want for your kids and for your families. We will stop at nothing to do the work, to make the hard decisions, not to run away from them, not to chase the front of a camera with a white coat, but to actually do the work.

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SANDOVAL: And in California, seven leading candidates for governor, they tried to set themselves apart from the PAC in the latest primary debate. Among the heated topics, immigration, gas prices, health care, a billionaires tax and President Trump's policies. Former Congresswoman Katie Porter, who had an early lead in the race, lost some ground after a video came out showing her yelling at a staffer back in 2001. And on Tuesday, she said that she's repeatedly apologized for the incident and then tried to change the focus.

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KATIE PORTER, FORMER U.S. HOUSE DEMOCRAT: Californians can decide for themselves about my temperament based on what they've seen here tonight. And if these bullies, these boys bullying and bickering hasn't been enough to raise questions about their temperament, I would really challenge that. We -- I have taken responsibility at this point hundreds of times. And that's appropriate because I made a bad decision and I treated someone badly. I apologized five years ago for it and we worked together for four more years. (END VIDEO CLIP)

SANDOVAL: And though Democrats are dominant in California, the top two vote getters in the June primary will advance regardless of their party. And some do worry that the five Democrats will split the leftist votes and land both Republicans on the November ballot.

Still to come here on CNN NEWSROOM, Ukrainians doubting that Russia intends to stick to its proposed ceasefire later this week after deadly strikes on Tuesday and a new barrage of aerial attacks overnight. Plus, hateful symbols sparking outrage here in New York City. The search is now underway for those responsible. An update on the investigation in a moment.

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SANDOVAL: Welcome back. The Ukrainian Foreign minister says that Russia has violated Ukraine's new unilateral ceasefire. President Volodymyr Zelenskyy had called for an open ended pause in fighting to begin at midnight on Wednesday. But Ukraine says Russia has already launched 108 drones and three missiles overnight and into the morning. Ukrainian officials say that this is proof that Russia's calls for a brief ceasefire later this week that was supposed to coincide with Moscow's Victory Day celebrations have nothing to do with diplomacy. CNN's Clare Sebastian joining me now from London.

Clare, what is the latest?

CLARE SEBASTIAN, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Yes, good morning, Polo. I think the key here is that Ukrainian authorities, the Ukrainian president in particular, is still assessing what the extent is of these ceasefire violations overnight. Obviously we're now coming up to 12 hours since the Ukrainian called ceasefire which came into effect at midnight Kyiv time has come into effect. And the air force numbers that we got detailing some 108 drones and three missiles that were launched overnight, they are dated from 6:00 p.m. Kyiv time. So they're trying to assess the extent of the violations.

But I think, look, the context here is very clear is that anytime that we've seen Moscow in the past call their own unilateral ceasefires, it has been very self-serving. It's been for things like Victory Day for Easter, there was one in the first year of the war for Orthodox Christmas as well. And they have long maintained that they don't want Ukraine to have a ceasefire to carry out peace talks. They don't want to give them time to regroup or anything like that.

But I will say at this point, and this is why it's very critical to see how Moscow reacts to this call from Ukraine for its own open ended ceasefire, at this point there's a lot at stake for Russia, right? I mean they really want this ceasefire over Victory Day. This is a time when Russia is increasingly under attack from Ukraine. There was even a strike earlier this week on a high rise apartment block in an upscale part of Moscow. Ukrainian authorities haven't commented on that specifically but I think it shows very clearly that there are gaps to be found even in the lead up to Victory Day in Moscow's air defenses.

And we've seen deep strikes really on the rise. The Defense Minister of Ukraine saying this week that they have quadrupled since February and are reaching ever further into Russia. So look, on the one hand, while you aren't going to see Russia make any clear and obvious concessions to Ukraine, they have a lot riding on their ceasefire over the weekend going well, the one that they've called and President Zelenskyy has said that from the moment the Ukrainian ceasefire was in effect, the Ukrainians would act reciprocally.

So we have a delicate situation today. But at this point we don't know the extent of the ceasefire violations or how the Ukrainian president is going to interpret them. Polo.

SANDOVAL: CNN's Clare Sebastian with that live report from London. Thank you, Clare.

Here in the U.S., anti-Israel protesters clashed with police. Dozens gathering outside a historic synagogue in Manhattan on Tuesday night. Some protesters trying to break through the barricade. Police say no arrests have been made so far.

And in Queens, in the borough of Queens, police say several synagogues and homes were vandalized. They say that images of swastikas and other anti-Semitic graffiti were spray painted in red and black. Police are now searching for at least four people after surveillance video shows them crouching down and then running away from a Jewish center early Monday morning.

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For the very latest let's go now to CNN's Brynn Gingras.

BRYNN GINGRAS, CNN CORRESPONDENT: And that surveillance video that is circulating now taken from one of the places that was targeted. The community there in Queens, hoping that someone might recognize these individuals and alert police. We know, though, that the NYPD Hate Crimes Task Force was at the scene on Monday. They were taking fingerprints. They were also taking photograph.

And again, pointing to that surveillance video, hoping to possibly catch as many as four people who might be responsible for this incident.

Again, what happened here is that on Monday night -- or Monday morning, rather, a community there in Queens woke up to swastika's hateful words written on a synagogue, a Jewish center, a home, who our affiliate WABC says actually belongs to a Holocaust survivor. That Jewish center, we're also learning, you know, it houses a daycare. So people waking up in this community and seeing these anti-Semitic incidents, which of course are on the rise across the entire state -- I'm sorry, across the entire country and the entire world.

Mayor Mamdani, who's been criticized about his response to these types of incidents being very quick though on X in this specific matter, is calling these incidents horrifying. And it says it angered him to see these swastikas painted on homes and synagogues in Queens. Saying there is no place for anti-Semitism in Queens or anywhere in our city. I stand in solidarity with our Jewish neighbors. Their safety, dignity and belonging are non-negotiable.

And again, New York not immune to these incidents. What we've learned, first, statistics wise, just within the last month, 60 percent of the hate crimes that actually happened in New York City were to the Jewish community. Only 10 percent of the population of this city are Jewish. So it really is alarming. And again, something the community is just trying to put as many feelers out there to hopefully catch these perpetrators.

In New York, I'm Brynn Gingras. Back to you.

SANDOVAL: Police in Washington State have arrested a woman for allegedly trying to break into a house, for driving under the influence and for attempting -- and for attempted assault after she drove onto a sidewalk and allegedly tried to hit a child who was riding a bike. Unfortunately, the child was not injured. They say that the woman denied trying to enter the house. And they say that she claimed she did not even remember chasing the child with her car. Here's some of the footage from an onlooker.

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UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: She's trying to run. Oh, my God. No kidding. Oh, my God.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

SANDOVAL: Again, that child unharmed.

Still ahead here on CNN NEWSROOM, the war in Iran has caused the demand for oil to fall as prices skyrocket. The latest reaction on the markets on the way. Plus, what's really left of Iran's nuclear capabilities after U.S. Attacks this year and last summer? CNN looks into satellite images that suggest it may not be as diminished as Donald Trump claims.

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