The President's Daily Brief - March 29th, 2024: Resolution Resonates in Iran, Seaway Skirmishes, & Crypto-King Condemned

Episode Date: March 29, 2024

In this episode of The President's Daily Brief: Israel voices strong objections to the US's stance on a UN resolution demanding an immediate ceasefire in Gaza, while Iran seems to be quite pleased with the outcome. We analyze what this means for international relations. An update on the turmoil in the Red Sea, where Houthi rebels defy expectations by attacking a Chinese vessel, breaking assurances to avoid Russian and Chinese ships. We break down the implications. We delve into the growing alliance between Russia and North Korea as Putin sends his chief intelligence official to Pyongyang. And in the Back of the Brief, crypto entrepreneur Sam Bankman-Fried has received a multi-decade prison sentence for charges including fraud, conspiracy, and money laundering. We provide an in-depth look at his sentence. 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. Email: [e-mail] Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

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You talking to me? Kayak, got that right. It's Friday, 29 March. Welcome to the President's Daily Brief. I'm Mike Baker, your eyes and ears on the world stage. Let's get briefed. Israel continues to criticize the U.S. for its decision not to block a UN resolution calling for an immediate ceasefire in Gaza.

But, you know who is happy about the situation? Well, that would be Iran. We'll look at recent comments from the Islamic Republic's leadership. Later in the program, we'll have the latest from the ongoing crisis in the at sea as Houthi rebels fire on a Chinese ship, despite promises, to spare both Russian and Chinese vessels. And honestly, if you can't trust promises from the Houthis, what is the world coming to? Plus, more on the deepening relationship between Russia and North Korea, with Vladimir Putin sending his top spy to Pyongyang to promote further cooperation

in intelligence gathering. Seriously, at some point, these guys should get a room. The bromance is getting out of hand. And in today's back of the brief, Judgment Day for Crypto-Grifter slash fraudster Sam Bankman-Fried, who's been sentenced to 25 years behind bars for fraud, conspiracy, and money laundering will have the details on his sentencing. But first, today's spotlight. As a diplomatic row continues between the U.S. and Israel over this week's U.N. Security Council resolution, other nations are celebrating the call for a ceasefire in Gaza, especially Iran. Of course, Iran would be Hamas's biggest sponsor. The Iranian publication, NOR News, linked to Iran's Supreme National Security Council, praised the UN resolution as a,

quote, diplomatic triumph for Hamas. Yes, Hamas is all about the diplomacy. The Iranian foreign ministry also stated that Israel's strong reaction to the resolution's adoption reflects a significant defeat for it, both militarily and in terms of international and political reputation. Hamas leaders visited Iran this week, demonstrating unity. During the visit, Hamas chief Israel Hanye held a press conference with Iran's foreign minister, where they lauded, they actually lauded the UN resolution for dealing a severe blow to Israel's political and military objectives. Hanye described the resolution as a, quote, fateful turning point for the Zionist entity, end quote, although he added, although this resolution came late and there may be some gaps in

to be filled, it itself indicates that the Israeli occupation is experiencing unprecedented political isolation, end quote. He further mentioned that Israel is, quote, losing political cover and protection even in the Security Council, as if they had political cover and protection from the members of the Security Council, and he said the U.S. is unable to impose its will on the international community, end quote. The Iranian foreign minister remarked that the resolution showed that, quote, even America and its partners have come to realize that eliminating Hamas is an illusion and an unachievable goal." End quote.

Well, so no surprise here. The sworn enemies of Israel were very satisfied with the recent developments of the United Nations, so that's nice. Meanwhile, the U.S. and Israel have begun sort of efforts to repair their relationship. The planned Israeli invasion of Rafa is on hold, while leaders in Washington, in Jerusalem, hurry to reschedule a meeting to discuss the plan. Israeli Prime Minister Netanyahu had canceled the delegation on Monday to protest the U.S. failure to veto the U.N. resolution.

The White House has confirmed that Netanyahu agreed to reschedule the meeting with no date set yet, but Axios has reported that it might happen as early as next week. Netanyahu continued to minimize the potential for a humanitarian disaster in the event of Arafa invasion this week. speaking to a bipartisan U.S. congressional delegation that's visiting Israel, he said, quote, people just move. They move with their tents. People move down to Rafa. They can move back up, end quote. Hmm. Well, someone should tell Netanyahu that comments like that, while factually accurate, aren't helpful in garnering any support from the international community, not that any support

from the international community is forthcoming. Coming up after the break, an update on the situation in the Red Sea. where Houthi rebels have targeted a Chinese vessel, defying earlier commitments to avoid engaging ships from China and Russia. We'll also look at the evolving ties between Moscow and Pyongyang, following a significant visit by the head of Russia's Foreign Intelligence Service to North Korea, aimed at bolstering collaboration in intelligence operations. I'll be right back. Choice hotels get you more of what you value.

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did not attack their ships in the Red Sea, a barrage of Houthi ballistic missiles struck a Chinese-owned and operated oil tanker. While the ship suffered minimal damage, the incident underscored the massive risks that persist for any vessels trying to navigate the Red Sea. China has publicly stated their opposition to disruptions, in international shipping for months, but they've never formally condemned the Houthis. That might be a bridge too far for them. Following the attack on the oil tanker, officials maintain their silence regarding the Iranian-backed militants, instead reiterating their calls for an end to the war in Gaza. The Chinese regime definitely plays the long game. A spokesperson for the Chinese foreign

ministry said, quote, China believes that the international community should quell the war in Gaza as soon as possible and create necessary conditions to cool down the situation in the Red Sea. China will continue to play a constructive role and make efforts to restore peace and tranquility in the Red Sea at an early date, end quote, hazza. And yet, they haven't. It's like when they call for restoration of peace in Ukraine, but quietly support Putin. They want to be seen as the leading diplomat of the world without actually engaging in meaningful diplomacy. It is perhaps China's hands-off approach that ingratiated their regime to the Houthi militants.

As I mentioned, China and Russia struck an arrangement with the Houthis on the 21st of March, receiving assurances from the militants that they would grant any ships belonging to the two powers safe passage to the Red Sea. While details of that arrangement remain murky, China and Russia appear to have promised the Houthis some form of political support. This may include backing the group and international body. such as the UN, where the two countries could then block further resolutions aimed at the militants. In January, the UN Security Council adopted a resolution condemning Houthi attacks on cargo ships in the Red Sea,

but China and Russia abstained from voting. Both countries have also been vocal in their opposition to Israel's ongoing military campaign in Gaza, with Russian officials hosting Houthi leaders in Moscow in January to discuss ways of pressuring Israel to end the war. Because, as you know, Putin is totally against war, totally hates it. As for the Russian presence in the Red Sea, their Pacific Fleet Navy crossed the Babelmandab Strait and entered the waters on Thursday. Kremlin leaders have not clarified the reason the fleet is joining the already overcrowded commercial shipping lane, but the move promises to raise tensions even higher, as Russia

obviously continues their war against Ukraine. Despite ongoing strikes by U.S. forces and coalition allies on Houthi facilities and weapons stores in Yemen, the Iranian-backed militants have continued their relentless attacks on international shipping vessels in the Red Sea. The Houthis have conducted more than 105 attacks on merchant vessels in the Red Sea since the Israel-Khamas conflict broke out in October, and there's frankly little reason to believe that they'll stop anytime soon. As we've mentioned before on the PDB, the only way they'll stop is if Iran instructs them to stop. And as long as Iran isn't paying any price for the instability that they've created, well, they have no motivation

to rein in their Yemen-based proxy. Shifting gears, I want to return to our coverage of the unsavory bond, and now's that for a way to describe a relationship, between the repressive regimes of Russia and North Korea. How are those two getting along? Well, it's a bit of an unsavory bond. As we've been discussing regularly on the PDB, the ever-blossoming relationship between the two powers has been causing international alarm and threatening regional stability in the Pacific. Now we're learning that the Kremlin dispatched their top spy to Pyongyang for a round of talks with his counterpart in North Korea. That's according to a Newsweek report. The talks between Sergei Nelichkin, who leads Russia's Foreign Intelligence Service and the North Korean State Security Minister unfolded over three days

and also included working-level talks between intelligence officials from both sides. North Korean state media said the spies briefed one another quote on on the present international and regional situation and further boosting cooperation to cope with the ever-growing spying and plotting moves by the hostile forces. End quote. Read another way, Russia and North Korea are buttoning up their stories, making sure they're telling the same lies to the international community.

I'm sorry, did that sound overly cynical? As BDB listeners will know, North Korea has been resupplying Russia with munitions as their supplies dwindle on the front lines in Ukraine, while Russia has been providing the North with technical support for their weapons programs. The news of a meeting came as Russia vetoed on Thursday the renewal of UN sanctions monitors for North Korea. North Korea has been under UN sanctions for its ballistic missile and nuclear programs since 2006, and a team of independent UN experts have monitored those sanctions for the military. the past 15 years or so, reporting back to the body twice a year. Now, the mandate for the current

panel of monitors will expire on April 30th, and it's not yet clear how the UN will choose to proceed. Following the vote, Deputy U.S. Ambassador to the UN, Robert Wood, slammed Russia, saying, quote, Moscow has undermined the prospect of the peaceful diplomatic resolution of one of the world's most dangerous nuclear proliferation issues, end quote. And in diplomatic terms, I guess that qualifies as slamming someone. The vote came on the heels of a report on Monday that revealed that Russia has begun shipping oil directly to North Korea in violation of UN sanctions. The shipments reportedly began on March 7 and Mark I documented direct seaborne deliveries

from Russia to North Korea since 2017. In 2017, the UN Security Council, with Russia's approval, significantly capped oil transfers to North Korea over their on. ongoing weapons tests. Observers called it a full frontal assault against the Western sanctions regime, dealing a major blow to the West's ability to squeeze Russian and North Korean interests with further sanctions. The shipments are expected to help stabilize the North's troubled economy and will, of course, free up resources that could be, okay, read that to be, will be redirected toward the regime's weapons programs. As expected, Russia continues to feign ignorance.

What, us? What are we doing? Denying allegations that they're receiving weapons shipments from the Kim regime or otherwise violating international sanctions. And if you sit very quietly, off in the distance, you can hear the sounds of another harshly worded memo being drafted by the Department of State. All right, coming up in the back of the brief, a deep dive into the sentencing of former cryptocurrency mogul Sam Bankman Freed, who's now headed the prison for fraud, conspirators. and money laundering. Now I'll be right back. In today's back of the brief, Sam Bankman-Freet, the 32-year-old cryptocurrency fraudster, better known as SBF, was sentenced to 25 years in prison yesterday for massive fraud against hundreds of thousands of customers of his now defunct digital currency exchange, FTX. In addition, the judge in the case also ordered a forfeiture of over $11 billion, that's $11 billion, to help fund the repayment of victims. If you'll remember,

SBF was convicted of fraud and conspiracy back in November after it was learned that billions of dollars of clients' funds had been moved and spent without their consent. Where did it go? In addition to misappropriating depositor funds, SBF defrauded investors in FTX of more than 1.7 billion and defrauded lenders to his crypto trading firm, Malamita, of more than $1.3 billion. SBF was once a media darling, serving as an ambassador for the burgeoning crypto market. He contributed billions to charity

and more than $70 million to election campaigns. It sounds wonderful until you realize it wasn't his money. And the $70 million to election campaigns was mostly the Democrats and liberal-leaning groups, making him the second overall top donor to Democrats only behind, can you guess, George Soros. Those donations included a hefty $5.2 million to President Biden's 2020 presidential campaign. Nothing to see here.

Before his fraud was uncovered, the Native Californian had amassed a fortune at one point estimated to be worth $26 billion. That's a lot of clamps, even appearing on the cover of Forbes magazine back in October of 2021. It's almost like nobody. Not investors, not the media, nobody, does actual due diligence anymore. In a statement posted shortly after the sentence was announced, U.S. Attorney Damian Williams said SPF's sentence is a warning to others. Williams stated that the 25-year sentence, quote, will prevent the defendant from ever again committing fraud, and is an important message to others

who might be tempted to engage in financial crimes that justice will be swift and the consequences will be severe, end quote. Now, it's worth noting that he's unlikely to serve the full 25-year term. He is likely to get time off for good behavior unless he spends his sentence committing further offenses, and who knows, maybe he'll create a brand-new empire swindling lung darts and soup packets from unsuspecting fellow prisoners. And that, my friends, is the president's daily brief

for Friday, 29 March. If you have any questions or comments, please reach out to me at pdb at thefirsttv.com. I'm Mike Baker. I'll be back later today with the PDB afternoon Bulletin. Until then, stay informed, stay safe, stay cool.