The President's Daily Brief
PDB Afternoon Bulletin | April 8th, 2025: Ukrainian Troops Invade Russia Again & Trump Announces High-Stakes Nuclear Talks With Iran
Tue, 08 Apr 2025
In this episode of The PDB Afternoon Bulletin: First, as diplomatic talks over the war in Ukraine stall, Kyiv launches a fresh invasion into Russian territory, and Moscow prepares for a new spring offensive. Later in the show, a surprising update regarding Iran, as President Donald Trump says the U.S. is now engaging in direct talks with the Islamic regime over their nuclear program, with a major meeting set to take place this Saturday in Oman. 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 Jacked Up Fitness: Go to https://GetJackedUp.com and 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 recent military actions have Ukrainian troops taken against Russia?
We'll sort through all the various mixed messages. But first, today's afternoon spotlight. We'll begin in Eastern Europe, where Ukrainian forces are back on the offensive, launching a fresh incursion into Russian territory.
On Monday, President Zelensky publicly confirmed for the first time that Ukrainian troops are fighting in Russia's Belgorod region, which borders Ukraine, engaging in active operations aimed at stifling Moscow's attack capabilities.
Chapter 2: What are President Zelensky’s goals for the Ukrainian incursions into Russian territory?
Now, Zelensky emphasized that the primary goal is not to seize large swaths of Russian territory, like they did with their invasion of the Kursk region back in August of 2024. but to protect Ukrainian towns and settlements in the regions of Sumy and Kharkiv, which face regular aerial bombardments from Russian forces that are stationed near their border, according to a report from Euronews.
The latest incursion is also designed to split Russia's attention, easing pressure on other parts of the war's front lines, particularly in the Eastern Donetsk region. Zelensky said, quote, we continue to carry out active operations in the border areas on enemy territory, and that is absolutely just. War must return to where it came from, end quote.
While the activity is only just coming to light, an assessment from the Institute for the Study of War suggests Ukrainian forces first crossed the border into Belgorod in mid to late March after being all but completely dislodged from the Kursk region following a Russian counteroffensive earlier that month. But details of the operation remain scarce.
It's not clear how many Ukrainian troops are taking part in the Belgorod incursion or how long Kiev plans to maintain a presence there. Kremlin officials have also confirmed the limited invasion, saying that Ukrainian forces are attempting to, quote, wedge themselves into the western part of the Belgorod region.
They accused Kiev of attempting to, quote, create a negative background amid the ongoing diplomatic talks between the U.S. and Russia. That, of course, implies that Putin is actually interested in ending his military adventurism, which doesn't frankly appear to be the case.
Moscow, which has been stalling diplomatic talks with the US by continually upping their demands for concessions from Ukraine, appears to be preparing for a major military operation. According to a report from Euromaidan Press, Russia is massing some 30,000 troops in the Donbass in preparation for an offensive push in the region by the end of the month.
Now, if the estimates of Russian troops prove to be accurate, Moscow would have a three-to-one numerical advantage over Ukrainian forces currently defending that sector. Analysts speculate that Russia seeks to seize the entirety of the Donetsk region in an attempt to further strengthen their negotiating hand in the ongoing U.S.-brokered talks to end the war.
I don't know about you, but I'm starting to think that Putin's not all that interested in ending the war.
As we've been tracking on the PDB, those talks began to deteriorate last week after Russia's deputy foreign minister pushed back on President Trump's peace proposals, saying that Moscow cannot accept the current terms as they fail to address Russia's long-term strategic concerns and objectives, one of those objectives apparently being the complete ownership of Ukraine.
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Chapter 3: How is Russia preparing for a spring offensive amid stalled peace talks?
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Chapter 4: What is the current status of US-Russia diplomatic talks regarding the Ukraine war?
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Chapter 5: What updates has President Trump announced about nuclear talks with Iran?
Welcome back to the Afternoon Bulletin. President Trump surprised the international community on Monday by confirming that the U.S. is engaged in direct talks with Iran, with what he described as a, quote, very big meeting set for Saturday in Oman.
As we discussed on the PDB this morning, speaking alongside Israeli Prime Minister Netanyahu in the Oval Office, Trump announced that the talks will continue with high-level participation. The president told reporters, quote, we'll see what can happen, end quote. Until now, details of the discussions remained opaque. Honestly, I just wanted to work the word opaque into this episode.
Chapter 6: How can investors protect their savings amid economic uncertainty?
But according to two sources familiar with the matter who spoke to Axios, we've now learned that the U.S. delegation will reportedly be led by Trump's Middle East envoy, Steve Witkoff. On the Iranian side, Foreign Minister Abbas Ragji is expected to take the lead, though, interestingly, the Iranian regime insists that the negotiations will remain indirect and mediated by Omani officials.
That version of events, of course, directly contradicts the White House's framing. An Iranian state-linked outlet reported Tuesday that Omani intermediaries will shuttle messages between the parties, an arrangement that Tehran appears to prefer to maintain a plausible distance from any overt diplomatic thaw. So, the U.S.
says there'll be direct talks, while Iran says that the talks will be indirect and conducted through Omani mediators. Looks like I get another chance to throw the word opaque into this episode.
American officials have confirmed to Axios that Washington is prepared for face-to-face engagement, which of course is not the same as saying that the two sides will engage in direct discussions on Saturday. So, let's have a show of hands over who's confused at this point.
One senior American official described the current situation as little more than, quote, a negotiation about the format of the negotiations. That, of course, underscores the depth of mistrust that persists between the two nations, mistrust that dates back to Trump's unilateral withdrawal from the Obama-era nuclear agreement back in 2018. Still, the stakes are enormous.
Trump warned that, quote, if the talks aren't successful with Iran, I think Iran is going to be in great danger, hinting at military action and reaffirming his administration's hard red line that Tehran will never be allowed to acquire a nuclear weapon.
As we've tracked here on the PDB, this latest diplomatic push began last month when Trump dispatched a formal letter to Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei proposing direct talks and offering Tehran a two-month window to come to the table. Khamenei, who had previously dismissed Trump's gestures as theatrics, responded in late March.
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Chapter 7: What is the Make America Healthy Again (MAHA) movement and how does it promote fitness?
Since then, Oman has reportedly acted as an intermediary, ferrying messages between the capitals. Meanwhile, fault lines are beginning to emerge inside the U.S. administration. President Trump, Witkoff, and Vice President J.D. Vance reportedly view diplomacy as viable and are optimistic that a deal is within reach.
In a March interview with Tucker Carlson, Witkoff said there was, quote, a real possibility of implementing a verification program to ensure that Iran halts any nuclear weapons development. But others remain unconvinced.
National Security Advisor Mike Waltz and Secretary of State Mark Rubio, both longstanding Iran hawks, have signaled deep skepticism, favoring a harder line that keeps a military option firmly on the table. Saturday's meeting in Oman could mark a watershed. Well, depending on what the format, structure, or nature of the talks might be, direct, indirect, well, we don't know.
A breakthrough could signal the most serious engagement between Washington and Tehran since the collapse of the 2015 deal. But if the talks in whatever format or structure they may occur collapse, well, the U.S. and Iran may well find themselves much closer to military conflict. And that, my friends, is the PDB Afternoon Bulletin for Tuesday, the 8th of April.
Now, if you have any questions or comments, please reach out to me at pdbatthefirsttv.com. And to listen to the show ad-free, well, it's simple. Become a premium member of the President's Daily Brief by visiting pdbpremium.com. See, it's that simple. I'm Mike Baker, and I'll be back tomorrow. Until then, stay informed, stay safe, stay cool.
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