China And NATO Prepare For Trump’s Return To White House

MONDAY PDB – The world wasn’t ready for Trump in 2016 — it’s not making that mistake this time. More than six months before the next American president takes office, there is already an extraordinarily advanced allied effort to manage a potential transfer of power in America.

Trump a ‘wild card’ on China as allies push for tougher policy. Former President Trump and his top foreign policy advisers are putting Chinese leader Xi Jinping on notice, threatening to enact a more aggressive U.S. policy toward China as Trump looks increasingly likely to return to the White House.

AS TRUMP HAS BEEN URGING – NATO has to change. Here’s how. Gen. Dwight Eisenhower, NATO’s first supreme allied commander Europe, felt strongly that his mission was to get Europeans “back on their military feet” — not for American troops to become the permanent bodyguard for Brussels and Berlin.

YOU ALL BETTER GET READY! – TRUMP’S A’COMING!

FOR YOUR EYES ONLY – Here’s a roundup of today’s other top defense stories from conservative national security expert PAUL CRESPO.

Not the President’s Daily Brief, but almost as good – PAUL’S DAILY BRIEFING – the PDB:

HURRICANE WATCH

Beryl strengthens to Cat 1 hurricane as Texas coast residents brace for impact. The U.S. Coast Guard shut the port of Houston on Sunday afternoon in anticipation of Beryl. It also closed the ports of Texas City, Freeport, and Galveston in Texas.

NATIONAL SECURITY

Coldest War: ‘Near-Arctic’ China joining power competition in North. The competition between China and the U.S. for global supremacy is moving into a new frozen theater.

US intelligence community (IC) is embracing generative AI. The normally secretive U.S. IC is growing bolder in discussing publicly how they’re using the nascent technology to improve intelligence operations.

POLITICS

CLOWN LEADING THE CIRCUS – Biden to host NATO summit geared at ‘managing expectations.’ The most memorable part of last year’s NATO summit in Vilnius, Lithuania happened before it even began.

Here’s why lawmakers want to automatically register men for Selective Service. Cardi B, as it turns out, is not a font of knowledge about the military draft. Despite misinformation and misunderstandings floating around TikTok, including from the rap superstar with more than 20 million followers on the social media platform, Congress is not on the verge of reinstating a military draft.

SHOULD IT BE CANCELED? Cost of Sentinel ICBM swells again to $214 million a missile. Cost projections have grown once again for the U.S. Air Force’s new Sentinel intercontinental missile, with the program now expected to cost taxpayers $141 billion, or 81% more than forecast four years ago.

WASTED EFFORT – Jill Biden to rally veterans and military families as Biden team seeks to shift focus back to Trump. This, during a campaign swing through battleground states, drawing contrasts with her husband’s Republican rival as the Biden team works to shift the conversation away from growing calls for the Democratic incumbent to drop his reelection bid.

US POWER OVERSEAS

European nations deploy fighters to Indo-Pacific, joined by USAF. Nearly 50 aircraft from the German, French, and Spanish air forces are embarking on a series of exercises across the Indo-Pacific region from June to August, with the U.S. Air Force jumping in on several as well.

US troops are leaving Niger bases. A number of small teams of 10-20 U.S. troops, including special operations forces, have moved to other countries in West Africa. But the bulk of the forces will go to Europe, at least initially.

Navy tests using drones for medical supply deliveries during RIMPAC Pacific exercise.

US envoy expresses regret over two alleged sexual assault crimes by US troops on Okinawa. The crimes have again stoked resentment of the heavy U.S. troop presence on the strategic island in Japan’s far southwest.

A US agency focused on foreign disinformation could shut down after the election. The State Department’s epicenter for combating disinformation worldwide could sunset this year if Congress doesn’t reauthorize it.

CHINA THREAT

What is China’s ‘monster’ coast guard ship and why is the Philippines spooked by it? China anchored one of its two “monster” coast guard ships inside the Philippines’ exclusive economic zone (EEZ) last week in what a Philippine official called an act of “intimidation.”

Japan and the Philippines sign a defense pact in the face of shared alarm over China. This allows Japanese forces to deploy for joint military exercises, including live-fire drills, to the neighboring Southeast Asian nation that is now building an alliance with Tokyo to face an increasingly threatening China.

Chinese, Russian joint warship patrol begins in the Pacific. The two began their annual joint patrol on Thursday and the combined flotilla is now in the Pacific Ocean after transiting Japan’s Osumi Strait.

RUSSIA THREAT – UKRAINE WAR

Putin sees no need for nuclear weapons to win in Ukraine — but he’s also keeping his options open. The message to NATO from Vladimir Putin was simple and stark: Don’t go too far in providing military support for Ukraine, or you’ll risk a conflict with Russia that could quickly turn nuclear.

will need 35-50 extra brigades under new defense to defend against an attack from Russia.

Ukrainian air force commander says Russian military duped by realistic models on the gound.

Russian-linked cybercampaigns put a bull’s-eye on France. Their focus? The Olympics and elections. Photos of blood-red hands on a Holocaust memorial. Caskets at the Eiffel Tower. A fake French military recruitment drive calling for soldiers in Ukraine. All are part of disinformation campaigns orchestrated out of Russia and targeting France.

IRAN THREAT

BULLS**T – ‘Reformist’ Pezeshkian beats hard-liner to win Iran managed presidential election, promising outreach to West. Masoud Pezeshkian won partly by promising to reach out to the West and ease enforcement on the country’s mandatory headscarf law after years of sanctions and protests squeezing the Islamic Republic. 

BUT HE ISN’T REALLY IN CHARGE – THE AYATOLLAH IS.

LOL! – Iran’s newest naval destroyer has sunk. This, while it was being repaired in a port near the Strait of Hormuz. The Sahand was being repaired at a wharf when it lost its balance due to water infiltration into the tanks.

INTERNATIONAL SECURITY

France faces coalition puzzle after left-wing surge in election. Left-wing bloc comes first but has no majority in parliament. Macron’s centrists second, far-right RN in third place. The French left conceded on Monday that talks to form a government would be tough and take time, after Sunday’s election thwarted the far right but delivered a hung parliament.

NOT GOOD – The yen is plunging. So is Japan’s defense budget. The yen’s collapse this year to a nearly four-decade low is undermining Japan’s plans for its largest military buildup in postwar history.

DEI HIRE! – For the first time ever, Canada appoints woman as top soldier. This, continuing a push by Prime Minister Justin Trudeau to plqce women to the most senior jobs.

WEAK CANUCKS – NATO is losing patience with one of its own members — and it’s not who you think. This week’s summit in Washington will get uncomfortable for Canada as allies press for more cash commitments.

US MILITARY

Corps reactivates one of two East Coast light attack helicopter squadrons it shut down in 2022 as part of its overall force redesign.

USS Boxer repairs complete, Marines preparing to return on deployment. Rudder repairs to LHD-4 are complete and the crew has left to test the fixes at sea. Meanwhile, its embarked Marines are preparing to return to sea to continue a deployment that was interrupted by the damaged ship.

COOL – The black jet: F-16 squadron gives its flagship jet an F-117 Nighthawk paint scheme. This, harking back to the world’s first operational stealth aircraft.

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.