The President's Daily Brief
May 12th, 2025: The ‘Alarming Intel’ That Forced the India-Pakistan Ceasefire & A ‘Total Reset’ In China?
Mon, 12 May 2025
In this episode of The President's Daily Brief: A fragile ceasefire between India and Pakistan is holding after the deadliest fighting in decades. U.S. officials reportedly acted on alarming intelligence, sparking a last-minute diplomatic push led by Vice President JD Vance and Secretary of State Marco Rubio. President Trump says a “total reset” has been negotiated with China after high-level trade talks in Geneva. But questions remain over what was actually agreed to—and whether China sees it the same way. Vladimir Putin calls for direct peace talks with Ukraine. President Zelensky says he’s open to it, but only if Russia agrees to a full ceasefire. And in today’s Back of the Brief—President Trump lands in Riyadh to begin a week of high-stakes diplomacy across the Gulf, including stops in Saudi Arabia, Qatar, and the United Arab Emirates. 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 TriTails Premium Beef: Visit https://TryBeef.com/PDB for 2 free Flat Iron steaks with your first box over $250 Birch Gold: Text PDB to 989898 and get your free info kit on gold DeleteMe: Get 20% off your DeleteMe plan when you text PDB to 64000. Message and data rates apply Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
Chapter 1: What triggered the India-Pakistan ceasefire?
It's Monday, the 12th of May. 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. Well, it was a weekend marked by diplomacy and negotiations, which, frankly, is far better than a weekend marked by missiles and trade wars. Okay, well, starting in South Asia, where a fragile ceasefire between India and Pakistan is holding.
The truce came together after US officials received alarming intelligence, prompting a last-minute diplomatic scramble led by Vice President J.D. Vance and Secretary of State Marco Rubio. We'll have those details. Later in the show, President Trump says a, quote, total reset has been negotiated with China following high-level trade talks in Geneva. But, you ask, what exactly does that mean?
And is Beijing on the same page? Well, those are very good questions. Plus, Vladimir Putin is calling for direct peace talks with Ukraine after more than three years of war. That would be Putin's war. President Zelensky says he's willing to meet, but only if Russia agrees to a full ceasefire first.
And in today's Back of the Brief, President Trump lands in Riyadh today, kicking off a week of high-stakes talks with key Gulf nations. We'll explain what's on the agenda. But first, today's PDB Spotlight. After days of intense airstrikes, drone attacks, and cross-border shelling, a fragile ceasefire between India and Pakistan appears to be holding.
The truce follows the worst bout of fighting in decades between the two nuclear-armed neighbors. And while the shooting has stopped, well, questions remain about what comes next and how the deal came together in the first place. The ceasefire was publicly announced on Saturday morning by President Trump via Truth Social.
The president wrote, quote, Congratulations to both countries on using common sense and great intelligence. But according to top U.S. officials, the ceasefire agreement actually goes beyond just putting the guns down.
Secretary of State Marco Rubio said shortly after Trump's post that both India and Pakistan had agreed to, quote, start talks on a broad set of issues at a neutral site, suggesting that the U.S. may have helped broker something more enduring. Rubio said the ceasefire followed two days of intense diplomatic efforts led by himself and Vice President J.D.
Vance, who were reportedly on the phone nonstop with senior officials from both countries. Now, the diplomatic push by the U.S., well, it comes as something of a surprise, especially after Vance told Fox News just days earlier that the India-Pakistan conflict was, quote, fundamentally none of our business.
Well, um, except for the fact that they've both got nuclear weapons, and it is in America's best interest to not have a nuclear war break out. That's bad for global business, of which the U.S. plays a significant role. But at the same time, Vance signaled that the White House wasn't planning to get involved, aside from encouraging a general de-escalation. So, what changed?
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Chapter 2: Who led the US diplomatic efforts to end the India-Pakistan conflict?
Putin stated, quote, the decision is now up to the Ukrainian authorities and their curators, who are guided, it seems, by their personal political ambitions and not by the interests of their peoples, end quote. Now, with Russian troops occupying roughly one-fifth of Ukraine and continuing to take territory, albeit slowly, Putin is offering talks, but only on his terms.
All right, coming up next in the back of the brief, President Trump touches down in Riyadh to kick off a diplomatic push across the Gulf with plans to court major investments and strengthen ties with Arab partners. I'll have those details next. Hey, Mike Baker here. Now, all right, let's talk about eating smart, right? About eating healthy.
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The only way to get that 20% off is to text PDB to 64000. That's PDB to 64000. Message and data rates may apply. In today's Back of the Brief, President Trump touched down in Riyadh today, kicking off a three-nation tour through the Gulf aimed at securing hundreds of billions in investments and reaffirming America's role as a regional power broker.
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