The President's Daily Brief
June 2nd, 2025: Ukraine Cripples Russian Bomber Fleet In Massive Drone Blitz & Gaza Hostage Talks Stall
Mon, 02 Jun 2025
In this episode of The President's Daily Brief: Ukraine hits Russia’s long-range bomber fleet in a daring drone strike that hit strategic airbases thousands of miles inside Russian territory. Hamas agrees to a partial hostage release but demands major changes to the U.S.-brokered ceasefire plan. The United States offers Iran a new nuclear deal—will Tehran take the bait, or walk away again? And in today’s Back of the Brief: ISIS resurfaces with its first attacks on Syria’s transitional government since Assad’s fall. 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 Birch Gold: Text PDB to 989898 and get your free info kit on gold Lean: Visit https://TakeLean.com & use code pb20 for 20% off Jacked Up Fitness: Go to https://GetJackedUp.comand use code BAKER at checkout to save 10% off your entire purchase Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
Chapter 1: What surprising event occurred in Ukraine's military strategy?
It's Monday, the 2nd of June. Well, look at that. It's a brand new month. 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. We'll start things off with a surprising blow to Russia's Air Force.
Ukraine just pulled off its most ambitious drone strike yet, hitting strategic bomber bases thousands of miles inside Russian territory. We'll have those details later in the show. Hamas offers to release hostages, but here's no surprise, is demanding changes to the U.S. ceasefire plan. We'll break down what each side wants.
And the US hands Iran a new nuclear deal proposal, hoping to break the deadlock. But will the Iranian regime accept terms that limit its uranium enrichment? And if they accept the deal, will they actually honor the terms of the deal and not cheat? And why is the answer no? We'll examine what's in the latest proposal.
And in today's Back of the Brief, the Islamic State, ISIS, is once again making its presence known, now turning its sights on the newly established Syrian government. Because, of course, ISIS is killing other Muslims. It's their signature move. But first, today's PDB Spotlight.
In what's shaping up to be one of the most devastating single days for the Russian war machine, and likely the worst day in the history of the Russian Air Force, Ukraine pulled off a bold and highly coordinated strike deep inside Russian territory.
The result, dozens of strategic bombers damaged or destroyed, billions of rubles in damage, and a shattering of the myth that Moscow's core military assets are beyond Ukraine's reach.
Sources within Ukraine's security services told the Kyiv Post that the special operation, codenamed Web, targeted at least four air bases, including Belaya and Irkutsk in Siberia and Olenia on the Kola Peninsula, near the border with Finland.
Now, what each of these military bases have in common is that they house Russia's strategic long-range bombers, including the Tu-95 and the Tu-22M aircraft, which form the backbone of Moscow's long-range strike capability. And despite Russia's supposedly formidable air defense systems, the attackers did not use stealth jets or cutting-edge hypersonic technology.
They used a small quadcopter, commercially available, low-tech drones, reportedly launched from inside Russia using trucks, vans, and cargo containers. Now first-person video footage from the drones shows direct strikes on the bombers with several aircraft erupting into flames.
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Chapter 2: What was the impact of Ukraine's drone strike on Russian bombers?
Chapter 3: How did the U.S. respond to Iran's nuclear ambitions?
And in today's Back of the Brief, the Islamic State, ISIS, is once again making its presence known, now turning its sights on the newly established Syrian government. Because, of course, ISIS is killing other Muslims. It's their signature move. But first, today's PDB Spotlight.
In what's shaping up to be one of the most devastating single days for the Russian war machine, and likely the worst day in the history of the Russian Air Force, Ukraine pulled off a bold and highly coordinated strike deep inside Russian territory.
The result, dozens of strategic bombers damaged or destroyed, billions of rubles in damage, and a shattering of the myth that Moscow's core military assets are beyond Ukraine's reach.
Sources within Ukraine's security services told the Kyiv Post that the special operation, codenamed Web, targeted at least four air bases, including Belaya and Irkutsk in Siberia and Olenia on the Kola Peninsula, near the border with Finland.
Now, what each of these military bases have in common is that they house Russia's strategic long-range bombers, including the Tu-95 and the Tu-22M aircraft, which form the backbone of Moscow's long-range strike capability. And despite Russia's supposedly formidable air defense systems, the attackers did not use stealth jets or cutting-edge hypersonic technology.
They used a small quadcopter, commercially available, low-tech drones, reportedly launched from inside Russia using trucks, vans, and cargo containers. Now first-person video footage from the drones shows direct strikes on the bombers with several aircraft erupting into flames.
Satellite and social media imagery appear to corroborate the damage, plumes of black smoke rising from runways and a growing trail of scorched tarmac. The Irkutsk strike alone is significant. That airbase sits nearly 2500 miles from the Ukrainian border. This marks Ukraine's first confirmed strike in Siberia, and it's the deepest inside Russian territory by a wide margin.
And there's a clear reason why the Ukrainians would want to strike these targets in particular. These long-range bombers are responsible for launching Russia's Kh-22 and Kh-32 cruise missiles. Those are fast, long-range weapons frequently used to target Ukrainian civilian infrastructure.
Ukraine's SBU security service confirmed to the Foreign Times that the agency was executing, quote, a large-scale special operation to destroy enemy bomber aircraft. While the SBU claims more than 40 bombers were hit, that figure has not yet been independently confirmed. Russian state media did acknowledge the strikes, but unsurprisingly, is downplaying their effectiveness.
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Chapter 4: What are the latest developments in Gaza hostage talks?
So the terror group appears to be walking a very narrow line, signaling openness to negotiation while clinging to its maximalist demands that Israel has repeatedly ruled out. For now, both sides are still talking, but few believe that they're close to a yes.
Okay, shifting to Iran, the US has presented its updated formal proposal to the mullahs for elements of a new nuclear deal, just hours after UN inspectors warned of a sharp and dangerous spike in Tehran's stockpile of highly enriched uranium.
The proposal, relayed through Oman's foreign minister, lays out Washington's terms for a halt to all Iranian uranium enrichment and introduces a bold framework, a regional nuclear consortium composed of Iran, Saudi Arabia, other Arab states, and the U.S. The aim? Well, the aim is to box in Iran's nuclear ambitions without triggering open confrontation.
While the document isn't a full draft agreement, it does mark the first time since negotiations began in April that the Americans have committed a formal offer in writing. Sources familiar with the talk say the written offer was hammered out during the fifth round of negotiations in Rome. Iran had pushed for something in writing after Witko floated an oral version at the previous round.
Iran's foreign minister, Abbas Araki, acknowledged receipt of the proposal in a post to X. And frankly, the stakes at this point, well, couldn't be higher. The International Atomic Energy Agency, the IAEA, on Saturday, sounded the alarm. Iran's stockpile of uranium, enriched to 60% purity, now stands at roughly 900 pounds, up from 605 pounds in February.
For better understanding, that's enough for about 10 nuclear bombs if the material is further refined to weapons grade, compared to just five or six when President Trump returned to office in January. The threshold for weapons grade is 90% enrichment.
IAEA Director Rafael Grossi didn't mince words, warning that, quote, the significantly increased production and accumulation of highly enriched uranium by Iran, the only non-nuclear weapon state to produce such nuclear material, is of serious concern, end quote. Well, congrats to Rafael Grossi. He's earned today's PDB Statement of the Obvious Award.
The agency's quarterly report stressed the urgent need for a, quote, a diplomatic resolution under a very robust IAEA inspection system. But the Islamic regime isn't backing down. The report details how the mullahs tried to deflect scrutiny by handing over intelligence documents and press clippings, claiming they proved nuclear material had been planted.
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Chapter 5: What challenges does Hamas present to the U.S. ceasefire plan?
Chapter 6: What was the significance of the recent attacks on Russian infrastructure?
But Hamas attached a laundry list of demands that go well beyond what's on the table, including a permanent ceasefire, full Israeli military withdrawal from Gaza, and uninterrupted humanitarian aid, none of which negotiators say were part of the current U.S. framework. Witkoff wasted no time firing back.
In a post on X, he called the response, quote, totally unacceptable, adding it, quote, only takes us backward. He urged Hamas to accept the existing framework so proximity talks can begin as soon as this week. Jerusalem echoed that stance.
Prime Minister Netanyahu's office said Hamas was, quote, continuing to adhere to its refusal, while Defense Minister Israel Katz put it more bluntly, stating, quote, the Hamas murderers will now be forced to choose, accept the terms of the Witkoff deal or be annihilated, end quote. Still, despite those public condemnations, back-channel talks do continue.
A source close to the negotiations told the Times of Israel that mediators are in ongoing contact with Hamas in hopes of narrowing the gap. So, is this a no? While Israeli officials are treating it as a, quote, effective rejection, Hamas's reply is being parsed as a counterproposal by mediators, just one unlikely to get much traction.
As for the deal itself, the full text has not yet been published, but sources say it includes a 60-day ceasefire and a phased hostage exchange, first the release of 10 living and 18 deceased Israeli hostages, followed by a second release of 30 more if a permanent ceasefire is secured.
In return, Israel would release over 1,200 Palestinian prisoners and convicted terrorists, as well as the return of 180 bodies, while allowing humanitarian aid into Gaza under UN supervision. Critically, the Trump administration had already secured Israeli approval before bringing the deal to Hamas, limiting the window for meaningful edits.
Netanyahu has signaled flexibility on a temporary truce, but insists that military operations must resume if Hamas refuses to disarm. The prime minister stated, quote, The war will end when Hamas lays down its arms, is no longer in government, and its leaders are exiled from Gaza, end quote. But inside the strip, well, time is running out.
More than 2 million Palestinians are trapped in increasingly dire conditions in the rebel-filled enclave, and Hamas knows it's losing ground. Mediators say this latest U.S. proposal is less generous than the one Hamas rejected in March.
Back then, senior Hamas official Khalil al-Haya said the terror group would not accept any partial deal that failed to deliver a complete and permanent end to the war. Now, though, Hamas is in no position to outright reject the plan. With Israeli troops advancing and the humanitarian crisis deepening, the group has little leverage left and even less room to maneuver.
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