The President's Daily Brief
February 20th, 2025: Trump Brands Zelensky A 'Dictator' & Sudan's Paramilitaries Pursue Breakaway Government
Thu, 20 Feb 2025
In this episode of The President's Daily Brief: First, relations between the U.S. and Ukraine are taking an ugly turn, as Donald Trump and Volodymyr Zelensky engage in an escalating war of words, with the president slamming the Ukrainian leader as a "dictator." Later in the show, we’ll have an update on the ceasefire in Gaza, as Hamas signals they are willing to release all the remaining hostages at once, provided the truce moves into the second phase. Plus, Sudan’s civil war takes another bloody turn, as Sudanese paramilitaries announce plans to form a breakaway government. In our 'Back of the Brief' segment, we’ll look at reports out of Israel that Iran, in partnership with Turkey, is covertly working to smuggle money to Hezbollah in an attempt to help the Lebanese militants rebuild their military operations. To listen to the show ad-free, become a premium member of The President’s Daily Brief by visiting PDBPremium.com. Please remember to subscribe if you enjoyed this episode of The President's Daily Brief. YouTube: youtube.com/@presidentsdailybrief Ramp: Get $250 when you join Ramp. Go to ramp.com/PDB. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
Chapter 1: What are the current tensions between Trump and Zelensky?
It's Thursday, 20 February. Welcome to the President's Daily Brief. I'm Mike Baker, your eyes and ears on the world stage. All right, let's get briefed. First, relations between the U.S. and Ukraine are taking an ugly turn, well, that's putting it diplomatically, as Presidents Trump and Zelensky engage in an escalating war of words, with the U.S.
President slamming the Ukrainian leader as a, quote, dictator. Later in the show, we'll have an update on the ceasefire in Gaza, as Hamas signals that they are willing to release all the remaining hostages at once, provided that the truce moves into the second phase, once again proving that Hamas is very adept at controlling a narrative.
Plus, Sudan's civil war takes another bloody turn, as Sudanese paramilitaries announce plans to form a breakaway government. And in today's Back of the Brief, we'll look at reports out of Israel that Iran, in partnership with Turkey, is covertly working to smuggle money to Hezbollah in an attempt to help the Lebanese militants rebuild their military operations.
Now, that could be construed as unfortunate behavior by a U.S. ally and NATO member. But first, today's PDB Spotlight.
Just one day after an American delegation met with Russian officials in Saudi Arabia to begin peace negotiations, President Trump lashed out at Ukrainian President Zelensky, calling the leader a, quote, dictator in a fiery rant that risks significantly complicating efforts to end the war.
The diplomatic spat, if I could use the word spat, how often do you hear that, began on Tuesday after Trump suggested Zelensky was responsible for starting the war in Ukraine, which, for those who need reminding, began after Russian dictator Vladimir Putin invaded the country in February of 2022. And that, of course, was after Putin annexed Crimea from Ukraine back in 2014.
Speaking to reporters at Mar-a-Lago on Tuesday, Trump chastised Ukrainian officials for protesting his administration's bilateral talks with Russian diplomats in Riyadh, claiming that Kiev could have secured a favorable settlement with Moscow years ago, but failed to act in their own best interests. or in Moscow's best interests, depending on your point of view.
Trump remarked, quote, Today, I heard, oh, well, we weren't invited. Well, you've been there for three years, he said. You should have never started it. You could have made a deal, end quote. The president also increased pressure on Zelensky to hold elections, which were suspended last year under Ukraine's ongoing period of martial law, declared following Putin's invasion.
Now, it's worth noting that Russia has been highly critical of Ukraine's suspended elections, rather ironically implying the emergency martial law declaration makes Zelensky an illegitimate leader, as opposed to Putin, who, of course, has always fixed his elections. That has been a regular talking point for Putin and his minions for quite some time.
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Chapter 4: How is Iran allegedly supporting Hezbollah?
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In today's Back of the Brief, Israeli leaders are sounding the alarm on ongoing Iranian efforts to smuggle large sums of money to Hezbollah militants in Lebanon to help the battered terrorist group and Iran's proxy rebuild their military operations. During a meeting in Israel on Tuesday with a bipartisan group of U.S.
senators, Foreign Minister Gideon Saar accused Turkey of covertly working with the mullahs in Tehran and the IRGC to facilitate their efforts to refill Hezbollah's depleted coffers. That's according to a report from the Times of Israel.
A statement from the foreign minister's office warned, quote, There is an intensified Iranian effort to smuggle money into Lebanon for Hezbollah to restore its power and status. This effort is being carried out, among other channels, via Turkey and with its cooperation, end quote.
As I'm sure our listeners are aware, Hezbollah was, until recently, the most well-armed and well-financed militant army in Iran's so-called Axis of Resistance. But through a very methodical military campaign that began last summer, Israel laid waste to Hezbollah's leadership and decimated their military infrastructure.
On 27 November, a beleaguered Hezbollah agreed to a ceasefire deal with Israel, ending two months of full-scale war, though the deal has, well, frankly, barely held together. But Iran is eager to help the terror group rebuild so they can once again threaten Israel and strengthen Iran's regional power base, which has been significantly diminished over the past year.
Iran could previously rely on smuggling cash and weapons through Syria. But as you know, since the fall of the Assad regime in December, they've had to pursue other options. And it appears that Turkey is helping to fill that void. For context, Turkish President Erdogan has been a highly vocal critic of Israel ever since the beginning of the war in Gaza, even openly expressing support for Hamas.
While Turkey's relationship with Iran is a complicated one, with the two countries finding themselves on opposite sides during Syria's civil war, It appears that they have found common cause in trying to undermine Israel's security. Would you look at that? It's true. The old saying, the enemy of my enemy is my friend. I guess that's why it's an ancient saying.
The Israeli foreign minister's office did not elaborate on how Turkey is aiding in the finance of Hezbollah, though Turkish banks have previously been accused by the U.S. of funneling money to the terror group. The warning comes just one week after Israeli officials exposed an Iranian scheme to smuggle suitcases full of cash to Hezbollah via Beirut's international airport.
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