The President's Daily Brief - March 24th, 2025: China Considers Sending Troops To Ukraine & Israel Launches Strikes In Lebanon

Episode Date: March 24, 2025

In this episode of The President's Daily Brief: A major report out of Germany reveals China may be considering sending troops to Ukraine as part of a future peacekeeping force. We’ll explain why this development could shift the global balance—and what it signals about Beijing’s long game. In the Middle East, Israel responds to a rocket barrage from Lebanon with targeted airstrikes, marking a serious escalation on its northern front. Meanwhile in Gaza, Hamas faces growing pressure from Palestinians who warn that continued conflict could spell “the end of Palestinian existence.” And in today’s Back of the Brief—a reversal from Venezuela. Caracas announces it will once again accept deportation flights from the United States, handing the Trump-era immigration strategy a win. 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 Stash Financial: Go to https://Get.Stash.com/PDB  Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

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It's Monday, the 24th of March. Welcome to the President's Daily Brief. I'm Mike Baker, your eyes and ears on the world stage. Coming to you, yet again, from a, well, an airport lounge somewhere. I'm not sure where it is at this point. I can't keep track. All right, let's get briefed. We'll start off with a major report out of Germany. China is reportedly considering sending troops to Ukraine as part of a future peacekeeping force.

That's right. Chinese troops in Ukraine. I'll explain why that's such a big deal and why the consequences could reach far beyond Ukraine's borders. Later in the show, a major escalation in the Middle East as Israel launches airstrikes into Lebanon following a rocket barrage coming from Lebanese territory. Plus, as the Israeli Defense Forces, the IDF, continue their renewed efforts in Gaza, Hamas faces calls from Palestinians to relinquish their power in order to avoid, quote, the end of the Palestinians' existence. And in today's back of the brief, it looks like a win for the Trump administration's immigration agenda.

Venezuela says it will once again accept deportation flights from the U.S., reversing a recent suspension. But first, today's PDB spotlight. We'll start things off today with a surprising development that's putting it mildly related to Putin's war in Ukraine. According to a new report from the German newspaper Die Welt, China is considering sending troops to Ukraine. Now China's PLA, the People's Liberation Army, wouldn't deploy to Ukraine to fight but to function as part of a future peacekeeping force. makes you wonder how the North Korean troops that are fighting next to Russian soldiers would feel about that. According to the report, and China is angling to join what British Prime Minister Kierstommer is calling a, quote, coalition of the willing. That's the group of countries prepared to send troops to Ukraine

to enforce a ceasefire between Kiev and Moscow, if and when that day comes. An unnamed European Union diplomatic source told DeVelt that the situation is, quote, delicate, well, that's probably, again, putting it mildly, but that China's inclusion in a peacekeeping mission could help get Russia to agree to such a force. The thinking here is fairly simple. Moscow would never accept NATO troops in Ukraine, they've said as much repeatedly,

not even under a UN peacekeeping mandate. But Chinese troops, well, that's different, given that China's Xi Jinping has basically propped up the Russian economy for the past three years and enabled Putin to keep his war machine chugging away. Now, if China has actually floated this idea as a possibility, it is highly likely that Chinese and Russian high-level officials have discussed the idea. And if they've discussed the idea and consider it an actual possibility,

well, it would be because Putin and Xi view it as advantageous to their own interests. Up to this point, the biggest roadblock to any international peacekeeping force has always been Russia's total distrust of NATO, well, not to mention Putin's lack of interest in stopping his war on Ukraine. There is that. But were he inclined to agree to some legitimate type of ceasefire, there's zero chance that Moscow would allow NATO boots on the ground in Ukraine. But China, despite some complicated history, is viewed by the Kremlin as a strategic, partner, and, as mentioned, an economic lifeline. If a peacekeeping force were needed to monitor or enforce a ceasefire, China might be the only major power that Russia wouldn't immediately

reject, and that gives Beijing a very rare position, a kind of diplomatic leverage that no Western nation could claim. It could even let China present itself as a so-called, quote, honest broker, capable of holding both sides to account. And yes, I somehow managed to say that with a straight face. Now to be clear, as mentioned, China has supported Russia throughout this war. They've parroted Russian talking points, ramped up trade and sent dual-use goods, then helped Moscow on the battlefield. So the idea of China, as a neutral party, is humorous at best. something else worth mentioning, which makes this potential scenario remarkable and concerning. If China does send peacekeeping troops to Ukraine, it would mark the first time ever that the Chinese

military establishes any kind of presence in Europe. The People's Liberation Army has participated in peacekeeping missions in Africa and Asia, but never in a conflict zone in the West. That would be, in geopolitical terms, a huge milestone. It would signal a major evolution. in how China sees its military role around the world, moving beyond regional power projection in the South China Sea or Indian Ocean, and stepping onto the global stage in a much more assertive way. It would also allow China to test and refine its overseas operations, everything from logistics and chain of command to how it gathers intel and coordinates with foreign forces.

And for Europe, the arrival of Chinese troops, even in a peacekeeping capacity, would raise all sorts of new questions. New diplomatic frameworks, new coordination protocols, new military rules of engagement. The list, frankly, goes on. It could even set a precedent. Once Chinese troops are on the ground in one European conflict zone, it becomes theoretically a lot easier to imagine them showing up in others, maybe in the Middle East or Central Asia.

Symbolically, it's a Cold War reversal. China, the once-isolated communist giant, stepping in to fill a role that NATO either can't or won't fill. To be fair, we're still a long way from any kind of ceasefire or peacekeeping agreement or the deployment of a peacekeeping force. But discussions are underway. President Zelensky and other European leaders are expected to meet in Paris this coming Thursday to talk through a possible peace plan and long-term security guarantees.

If China really is serious about joining a mission, in Ukraine, well, that subject may well be on the table during the Paris discussions. All right, coming up next, a major escalation in the Middle East as Israel strikes Lebanon and ramps up operations in Gaza, while Hamas faces mounting pressure from Palestinians and Fatah leadership to step aside. I'll be right back. Hey, Mike Baker, terror wars, recession fears, stubborn inflation, well, no wonder. Gold has been routinely hitting all-time highs, right? In volatile markets, including the current one, look, the important thing is, don't sit on the sidelines with your head in the sand. Take control and safeguard your savings. It's uncertainty and also the desire to diversify savings

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Kick off brunch or dinner with quality cheese and charcutory with no synthetic nitrates. Then go seafood. There's an abundance on sale at Whole Foods Market where it's all sustainable while coder. responsibly farmed. At the bakery, grab seasonal treats like their strawberry pretzel cream pie, and you can't go wrong with a ready-to-heatheich Lorraine, deviled eggs, and fresh-cut fruits to go. Celebrate Mom with Whole Foods Market. Welcome back to the PDB. In a significant return to fighting, Israel launched two waves of air strikes on southern Lebanon Saturday, killing at least seven in retaliation for a rocket barrage from the territory. The strikes marked the most serious flare-up with Khazbila since last year's U.S. brokerage ceasefire

began to fray. According to the Israeli defense forces, the strikes targeted dozens of Khazbalah positions, including weapons depots, command hubs, launch pads, and infrastructure nodes, most notably in the coastal city of Tire, one of southern Lebanon's major urban centers. But Hezbollah denied launching the rockets that prompted the IDF response, accusing Israel of fabricating a pretext to resume military operations. While the terror group typically avoids comment on such incidents, its uncharacteristic denial this time signals growing unease amid mounting pressure,

both at home and abroad. The first wave of Israeli strikes took place in the early morning, followed by a second barrage later that night, reportedly greenlit by Prime Minister Netanyahu and Israeli Defense Minister Israel Katz. In a joint statement, the two insisted the action was necessary to safeguard border communities from the Iran-backed terror group. Meanwhile, Lebanon's military said it dismantled three rudimentary Hezbollah rocket launchers and opened an investigation into the origins of the attack.

Lebanese officials wasted no time, as you might imagine, in condemning the Israeli strikes. The country's prime minister warned that the country was being pulled toward, quote, new war, while President Joseph Aoun decried what he called, quote, attempts to drag Lebanon into a cycle of violence. The United Nations' interim force in Lebanon echoed those concerns, urging all sides to recommit to what remains of the fragile ceasefire. That truce, crafted by American and French negotiators back in November, had until the weekend, managed to dial down a conflict that had been, of course, simmering and brewing for over a year. Under its terms, Hezbollah agreed to pull fighters and weapons back from the border,

while the Lebanese armed forces were to boost deployments in the area. In exchange, Israel was to begin withdrawing from newly occupied outposts by January. But Israel extended that deadline, pushing the withdrawal date to 18 February. It still maintains controls over five positions in southern Lebanon, citing the Lebanese army's failure to adequately secure the area. In the meantime, Israeli airstrikes have continued with Jerusalem insisting that they're aimed at preventing Hezbollah from rebuilding its arsenal. Now, Hezbollah's campaign began in the wake of Hamas's 7 October terror attacks on Israel.

The terror group framed its attacks as an act of solidarity with Hamas and the people of Gaza. Since then, the border clashes have spiraled into the deadliest regional spillover of the Gaza war to date. Dozens of Hezbollah commanders, much like Hamas, have been killed, large numbers of fighters lost, and a significant portion of its weapon's stockpile wiped out. For its part, Lebanon's military has struggled to reassert control in the South, where Hezbollah remains deeply entrenched, and frankly, that's been the history of Lebanon's military. President Aoun has repeatedly insisted that only the state should bear arms. That's a a not-so-subtle jab at Fezbollah.

Forcing that remains a politically fraught, if not logistically impossible, task. At least until Israel's campaign to degrade Fesbola, the Iranian-backed proxy was actually more of a fighting force than the Lebanese military. Okay, staying in the region, Israel confirmed it killed Hamas political leader, Sala al-Bardawil, in a Saturday night air strike in southern Gaza, marking the third high-ranking Hamas official to be assassinated in the span of a week. Bartowiel, a longtime figure in Hamas' political bureau and head of its planning and development ministry, was killed alongside his wife in a drone strike that targeted a tent shelter in Kan Yunis.

Israeli officials accused Bartowil of playing a central role in the terror group's strategic wing, claiming that his elimination would deal a significant blow to Hamas' ability to govern and its operational capacity. Reports from the Hamas-run Gaza Health Ministry, say at least 19 people, including Butterwheel, were killed in strikes overnight, though those numbers could not be independently verified and did not distinguish between civilians and terrorists. The strike comes on the heels of Israel's assassinations of two other top Hamas figures last week, its internal security chief, and the terror group's de facto government head, Isam Da Alis. Together, the killings form part of an intensifying Israeli campaign to dismantle Hamas's leadership structure.

As we've been discussing on the PDB, ground operations have also rammed up across the strip. In the north, Israeli forces resumed combat in Bait Hanoon, and an area previously cleared but now re-entered, as the IDF says it's targeting remaining Hamas infrastructure and expanding a strategic buffer zone along the border. fighter jets carried out strikes ahead of a grounded fence, which military officials described as a renewed phase of combat. In southern Gaza, Israeli forces encircled Tel-Sultan, a neighborhood in Rafah long regarded as a Hamas stronghold. The IDF said troops are now conducting raids on tunnel networks and command centers that are believed to have housed hostages.

Residents in Tel-Sultan were issued a, quote, urgent evacuation order. with an idea of Arabic language spokesman, warning the area had become an active combat zone. Maps of the evacuation corridor circulated online, urging civilians to flee westward toward the coast on foot. Meanwhile, in a rare break from internal silence, the Palestinian authorities ruling Fatah faction called on Hamas to relinquish its hold on Gaza. In a statement sent to AFP, a fatah spokesman, one that continued fighting under Hamas rule, would, quote, lead to the end of Palestinians' existence. On Friday, Israeli defense minister Israel Katz, said he ordered the IDF to seize more territory

unless Hamas agrees to release the remaining hostages. Katz stated, quote, as long as Khamas continues its refusal, it will lose more and more land that will be added to Israel, end quote. Though Israel has largely refrained from annexing areas that it's captured, Katz suggested the IDF might maintain a long-term presence in captured areas to safeguard troops and nearby communities. As we noted last week on the PDB, Prime Minister Netanyahu authorized a full resumption of hostilities after Hamas rejected a proposal to extend phase one of the ceasefire. The message from Jerusalem, negotiations, if they occur at all, will now proceed under fire. All right, coming up in the back of the brief,

a win for the Trump administration as Venezuela reverses its suspension of deportation flights from the U.S. We'll have those details next. This podcast is brought to you in part by Stash. Saving an investing can feel impossible, but with Stash, well, it's not just possible. It's easy. Stash isn't just an investing yet. It's a registered investment advisor that combines automated investing with dependable financial strategies to help you reach your goals faster. They'll provide you with personalized advice on what to invest in based on your goals,

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Investment advisory services offered by Stash Investments LLC and SEC registered investment advisor. Investing, of course, involves risk and as they say, offer is subject to terms and conditions. This episode is brought to you by Redfin. You're listening to a podcast, which means you're probably multitasking, maybe even scrolling home listings on Redfin, saving homes without expecting to get them. But Redfin isn't just built for endless browsing. It's built to help you find and own a home. With agents who close twice as many deals,

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And when you see the money side, you understand what others miss. Get the money side of the story. Subscribe now at Bloomberg.com. In today's back of the brief, Venezuela has agreed to resume accepting deportation flights for its migrants after halting cooperation earlier this month, marking a major win for the Trump administration's deportation policy. The pivot came Saturday when Venezuelan strongman Nicholas Maduro's regime reached an agreement with Washington to resume deportation flights for Venezuelan nationals

who crossed into the U.S. illegally. The first flight touched down Sunday, effectively ending a suspension triggered after the administration reversed a Biden-era easing of sanctions on Venezuela. and oil exports. Jorge Rodriguez, president of Venezuela's National Assembly and Maduro's lead negotiator with Washington, confirmed the policy shift, stating, quote, migrating is not a crime, but his remarks were laced with defiance. Rodriguez vowed to rescue, quote, our brothers kidnapped in El Salvador. That's a nod to Venezuelan deportees held in that country's prison from U.S. deportation flights earlier this month, despite their affiliations with gangs. like Trentorahuagua, the TDA, and MS-13.

Maduro himself echoed the message, calling the migrants, quote, kidnapped, framing the deportations not as a law enforcement effort, but as an affront to national dignity. That framing, however, hasn't slowed the Trump administration's momentum. Speaking of an affront to national dignity, how about Maduro's well-documented theft of his country's last presidential election, or as violent crackdowns on any dissent, or maybe his arrests of political opponents and opposition activists. Maduro basically is giving a masterclass in affronting national dignity. Regardless, since the collapse of the initial agreement, Washington has now redoubled pressure on Latin American governments to align with U.S. immigration enforcement priorities. Secretary of State Mark Arrubio warned

that Caracas would face, quote, severe and escalating sanctions if it refused to take its citizens back. That threat now appears to have paid off. As we've been tracking on the PDB, roughly 350 Venezuelans have been deported in recent weeks, including around 180 who had been held at Guantanamo Bay. The breakthrough with Caracas arrives amid legal headwinds for the administration. The White House has relied heavily on the Alien Enemies Act of 1798. That's a dusty wartime statute that grants the president's sweeping authority to expel now. nationals from hostile states. That provision had been used to justify deporting Venezuela's to third-party nations like El Salvador, but a federal judge in Washington earlier this month

issued a temporary injunction, ruling that the administration's application of the law exceeds its statutory scope. The New Deal with Venezuela offers a cleaner legal pathway, one less vulnerable to U.S. court challenges. And that, my friends, is the President's Daily Brief. for Monday the 24th of March. Of course, to listen to the show ad-free, simply become a premium member of the President's Daily Brief by visiting PDB Premium.com. Very simple.

I'm Mike Baker, and I'll be back later today with the PDB afternoon bulletin. Until then, stay informed, stay safe, stay cool. It's Mushrooms with me, Maddie Matheson. You know what's better than thinking about dinner too hard? Not. Stop that, and just choose mushrooms. minutes done dinner's that easy and you feel like a genius it's not magic

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