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PAUL’S DEFENSE BRIEF (PDB) – Trump said Monday the US will hold direct talks with Iran about ending its nuclear weapons program; warning the Iranians they would be in “great danger” if the talks don’t succeed. Tehran confirmed the talks but insisted they would be indirect, through a mediator.
After meeting with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, Trump said talks will start Saturday. He insisted Tehran can’t get nuclear weapons.
“We’re dealing with them directly and maybe a deal is going to be made,” Trump said. He added that “doing a deal would be preferable to doing the obvious.”
Asked if he would commit to military action against Iran should his negotiators be unable to come to terms with Tehran, Trump responded, “Iran is going to be in great danger, and I hate to say it.”
MEANWHILE: A WIMPY former UK ambassador to Iran warns the risk of a conflict involving Iran, Israel and the US was ‘never higher,’ than now, as tensions rise over Tehran’s nuclear and regional ambitions.
FOR YOUR EYES ONLY – Here’s a roundup of today’s other top defense stories ending the week from conservative national security expert PAUL CRESPO.
Not the President’s Daily Brief, but almost as good – PAUL’S DEFENSE BRIEFING – the PDB:
NATIONAL SECURITY
Trump made a surprise announcement: The US appears poised for its first $1 trillion defense budget request.
Can the US simultaneously arm Ukraine, Taiwan, and Israel without hollowing out its own arsenal? A new report says yes—for now. But, it adds, U.S. defense industry may not be able to keep it up without major reform and new investment.
Under Trump, the Coast Guard is planning a radical redesign that includes more personnel, improved technology and acquisition systems, and changes to its organization that include a service secretary.
HOMELAND SECURITY
Supreme Court clears the way for deportations of alleged Venezuelan gang members to resume, using a seldom-invoked wartime authority, but with a chance for judicial review.
As the US-Mexico land border tightens, security focus turns to dangerous sea crossings.
Trump holds firm on tariffs as the White House looks for ways to calm nervous allies. Trump sees an opportunity to “change the fabric” of the US with his global tariffs.
The EU said it offered the US a “zero-for-zero” tariff deal on cars and industrial goods weeks before Trump launched his tariffs, but that it would “not wait endlessly” to defend itself.
Worries that Trump—having fired the director and deputy director of the NSA—might appoint a partisan political figure to lead the nation’s principal signals-intelligence office.
Growing hardline House conservative opposition to the Senate’s framework for advancing Trump’s ambitious legislative agenda is threatening to make this week’s vote one of the toughest yet for GOP.
PENTAGON WOKE WATCH
Vice Adm. Shoshana Chatfield, a top US military official at NATO, has been fired reportedly for being woke, as Team Trump continues its removal of certain senior uniformed officers.
DOD-wide review into grooming and uniform standards will revisit the one-year-old rule allowing sailors to put their hands in their pockets while in uniform.
US POWER OVERSEAS
These are the approximate positions of the Navy’s deployed carrier strike groups and amphibious ready groups throughout the world as of April 7, 2025.
The Marine Corps is leaving anti-ship missile batteries in the Philippines after the upcoming Balikatan drills in preparation for another exercise in June.
CHINA THREAT
China vows to “fight to the end” if Trump imposes an additional 50% tariff on Chinese goods, raising them to 104%. This, as many countries rush to negotiate with the US.
New landing footage has emerged of the largest of China’s two new tailless stealth fighters, widely referred to as the J-36.
A retired Green Beret in Congress wants to ban a chain of supplement and nutrition supply stores from military bases because of ties to Chinese owners.
China has spent two decades positioning its companies to dominate biotechnology, and now the US needs to pay up to catch up, with calls for $15 billion investment over 5 years, a congressional biotech commission warns.
Japan formally activated a new joint maritime amphibious unit geared towards surging forces to Japan’s southwest islands.
RUSSIA THREAT – UKRAINE WAR
Ukrainian F-16 fighters are flying “every day,” targeting missile threats and striking Russia’s eastern region, says EUCOM boss.
Putin’s spies for hire: What the UK’s biggest espionage trial revealed about Kremlin tactics in wartime Europe.
SPACE THREAT
Space Force plans to launch the next GPS III satellite in late May as part of a rapid launch mission to demonstrate the ability to prepare and launch a satellite on truncated timelines.
Space Force missile-tracking ‘Foo Fighter’ satellites ready for a planned late 2027 launch of 8 birds.
Space intelligence firm LeoLabs announced that its next-generation mobile expeditionary radar, Scout, designed to provide coverage of space activity from various locations around the world, will be deployed to the Indo-Pacific this year.
INTERNATIONAL SECURITY
America’s largest naval shipbuilder, HII, will partner with South Korea’s HD Hyundai Heavy Industries to boost shipbuilding across numerous vessel classes.
US, UK successfully test air-breathing engine for hypersonic missiles, a critical breakthrough in countering asymmetric Russian and Chinese threats.
South Korea’s acting president sets snap election for June 3 predecessor was impeached and removed from office over a disastrous declaration of martial law.
Once a quiet outpost on the Gulf of Aden, Berbera in Somaliland is now at the heart of a high-stakes geopolitical tug-of-war, as regional and global powers jostle for position along one of the world’s most critical maritime chokepoints.
US MILITARY
The Air Force may need more EA-37B electronic attack aircraft than the 10 it is currently planning to buy.
Marine F-35 and Air Force F-22 pilots operated jointly for the first time last month in a digital training simulation soon expected to become standard for Marine, Navy and Air Force fighters.
The much-anticipated final decision on who will build the Navy’s next-generation F/A-XX fighter aircraft is currently under discussion by ‘Secretary-level and above’ officials.
Unlike the Air Force, the Navy won’t scramble to field loyal wingman drones — carrier-based Collaborative Combat Aircraft (CCA) — that will fly alongside the service’s fighters as force-multipliers.
The Navy’s high stakes plans to integrate hundreds of crewed and uncrewed maritime vessels, linked up via Project Overmatch, are essential to expand readiness and lethality by 2027.
Navy’s Boeing MQ-25 Stingray is behind schedule and over budget, will up the carrier air wing’s aerial refueling game dramatically. And its extreme range gives it massive potential far beyond a normal tanker.
After some debate, Marine rifle squads will continue to be 13 Marines, with at least one rifleman trained for expertise in long-range weapons like drones.
END of PDB
The opinions expressed in this article are those of the author and do not necessarily reflect the positions of American Liberty News.
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