The President's Daily Brief
November 20th, 2024: Undersea Sabotage: Russia Accused of Cutting Baltic Cables & Operation Deutschland Revealed
Wed, 20 Nov 2024
In this episode of The President's Daily Brief: Allegations of sabotage against Moscow emerge as two undersea internet cables in the Baltic Sea are cut, with European leaders accusing Russia of hybrid warfare. Newly uncovered documents reveal Germany’s armed forces are implementing a covert strategy called "Operation Deutschland," a detailed 1,000-page plan for large-scale conflict. American diplomats are in Lebanon as reports suggest Hezbollah has agreed to a U.S.-backed ceasefire proposal, potentially ending their conflict with Israel. And in today’s Back of the Brief: President-elect Trump selects Cantor Fitzgerald CEO Howard Lutnick, a known China hawk, as commerce secretary, signaling an aggressive economic strategy against Beijing. 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 Patriot Gold: Call 1-888-870-5457 for a free investor guide. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
Chapter 1: What allegations are made against Russia regarding undersea cables?
All right, let's get briefed. We're starting today with allegations that Moscow is engaging in some deep sea sabotage as two undersea internet cables in the Baltic Sea linking Finland to Germany have been severed. European leaders are pointing fingers at Russia, calling it a potential act of hybrid warfare. We'll have the details.
Later in the show, newly uncovered documents reveal that Germany's armed forces have begun executing a covert strategy called Operation Deutschland, a 1,000-page blueprint for preparing for large-scale conflict. Plus, American diplomats are in Lebanon this week as reports emerge that Hezbollah has agreed to a U.S.
ceasefire proposal that could, I say could, and that would mean possibly, bring an end to the war with Israel. And in today's back of the brief, President-elect Trump has made another major decision regarding his second term cabinet, choosing a China hawk to lead the U.S. Commerce Department. But first, today's PDB Spotlight.
As the conflict in Ukraine takes a sharp turn towards further escalation this week, it appears Russia is also seeking to intensify their shadow war against Kyiv's NATO allies. European governments accused Russia on Tuesday of expanding their hybrid attacks on Ukraine's Western allies after two critical Internet cables in the Baltic Sea were severed in quick succession late Sunday evening.
One of the cables links Finland and Germany, while the other connects Sweden to Lithuania. While an investigation is ongoing by European authorities, officials suspect the Kremlin is behind this major act of sabotage. That's according to a report from the Wall Street Journal.
Baltic countries such as Lithuania have boosted surveillance of their waters in response, though European leaders have so far stopped short of directly accusing Russia. Germany's defense minister said, quote, Preliminary findings from the investigation suggest the cables were likely cut in Swedish economic waters in an area where the two cables briefly intersect.
Given the damage, investigators have concluded it must be the result of human interference rather than a natural event. Officials said the incident has caused only minor disruptions to Internet and telecommunications services, adding it will likely take up to 15 days to repair the damage.
Still, the incident represents an escalation as these marine fiber optic cables are a critical piece of global communications infrastructure that provide Internet and telecommunications connectivity to virtually every corner of the world. The foreign ministers of France, Germany, Italy, Poland, and Britain,
issued a joint statement Tuesday, saying, quote, Moscow's escalating hybrid activities against NATO and EU countries are unprecedented in their variety and scale, creating significant security risks, end quote. Leaders in Warsaw said if such attacks continue, They will close all remaining Russian consulates in Poland. The incident came just weeks after U.S.
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Chapter 2: What is Operation Deutschland and what does it entail?
Chapter 3: What are the implications of cutting undersea internet cables?
issued a joint statement Tuesday, saying, quote, Moscow's escalating hybrid activities against NATO and EU countries are unprecedented in their variety and scale, creating significant security risks, end quote. Leaders in Warsaw said if such attacks continue, They will close all remaining Russian consulates in Poland. The incident came just weeks after U.S.
Chapter 4: How are European countries responding to Russia's actions?
officials warned Russia was assembling a, quote, sabotage unit consisting of submarines and drones to target underwater Internet cables under the direct orders of the Russian Defense Ministry. The officials said the U.S. has been tracking increased Russian military activity around key undersea cables for months.
Chapter 5: What does the U.S. official warning about Russian sabotage entail?
Chapter 6: What are the details of the new U.S. commerce secretary appointment?
Chapter 7: What is the status of the conflict in Lebanon and Hezbollah's stance?
ceasefire proposal that could, I say could, and that would mean possibly, bring an end to the war with Israel. And in today's back of the brief, President-elect Trump has made another major decision regarding his second term cabinet, choosing a China hawk to lead the U.S. Commerce Department. But first, today's PDB Spotlight.
As the conflict in Ukraine takes a sharp turn towards further escalation this week, it appears Russia is also seeking to intensify their shadow war against Kyiv's NATO allies. European governments accused Russia on Tuesday of expanding their hybrid attacks on Ukraine's Western allies after two critical Internet cables in the Baltic Sea were severed in quick succession late Sunday evening.
One of the cables links Finland and Germany, while the other connects Sweden to Lithuania. While an investigation is ongoing by European authorities, officials suspect the Kremlin is behind this major act of sabotage. That's according to a report from the Wall Street Journal.
Baltic countries such as Lithuania have boosted surveillance of their waters in response, though European leaders have so far stopped short of directly accusing Russia. Germany's defense minister said, quote, Preliminary findings from the investigation suggest the cables were likely cut in Swedish economic waters in an area where the two cables briefly intersect.
Given the damage, investigators have concluded it must be the result of human interference rather than a natural event. Officials said the incident has caused only minor disruptions to Internet and telecommunications services, adding it will likely take up to 15 days to repair the damage.
Still, the incident represents an escalation as these marine fiber optic cables are a critical piece of global communications infrastructure that provide Internet and telecommunications connectivity to virtually every corner of the world. The foreign ministers of France, Germany, Italy, Poland, and Britain,
issued a joint statement Tuesday, saying, quote, Moscow's escalating hybrid activities against NATO and EU countries are unprecedented in their variety and scale, creating significant security risks, end quote. Leaders in Warsaw said if such attacks continue, They will close all remaining Russian consulates in Poland. The incident came just weeks after U.S.
officials warned Russia was assembling a, quote, sabotage unit consisting of submarines and drones to target underwater Internet cables under the direct orders of the Russian Defense Ministry. The officials said the U.S. has been tracking increased Russian military activity around key undersea cables for months.
Now, I want to stress again that these cables serve as the backbone of Internet and telecommunications traffic around the world. Depending on the scale of sabotage, an attack could have, of course, a devastating global impact. disrupting everything from financial and energy markets to the basic operations of governments and their militaries, not to mention the damage it could do to TikTok.
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