The President's Daily Brief - October 3rd, 2025: Trump Considers MAJOR Long-Range Missile Upgrade For Ukraine & China’s ‘Mock Taipei’

Episode Date: October 3, 2025

In this episode of The President's Daily Brief: Ukraine may soon get a major long-range upgrade, as the Trump administration weighs sending Tomahawk cruise missiles capable of striking deep into Russian territory. China has built a “Mock Taipei” in Mongolia — full-scale replicas of Taiwan’s government buildings used to rehearse for an eventual invasion. Washington announces sweeping new sanctions on Iran, targeting companies and individuals linked to its weapons programs. And in today’s Back of the Brief — the largest cocaine bust in U.S. history: one million pounds seized, cutting cartel profits by billions. To listen to the show ad-free, become a premium member of The President’s Daily Brief by visiting https://PDBPremium.com.Please remember to subscribe if you enjoyed this episode of The President's Daily Brief.YouTube: youtube.com/@presidentsdailybriefStash Financial: Don't Let your money sit around. Go to https://get.stash.com/PDB to see how you can receive $25 towards your first stock purchase.TriTails Premium Beef: Reclaim dinner from the jaws of school-year chaos Visit https://trybeef.com/PDB. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

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Later in the show, China is building a mock Taipei in Mongolia, of all places. It's a training ground with replicas of Taiwan's government buildings, giving people's Liberation Army troops a place to rehearse for an eventual invasion. of the city. Plus, Washington hits Iran with sweeping new sanctions aimed at companies and individuals tied to its weapons programs. And in today's back of the brief, the largest cocaine seizure in U.S. history. A million pounds of Florida snow has been taken off the streets this year, dealing a massive blow, oh, get it? You're welcome, to cartel profits. But first, today's BDB spotlight. We begin today with the story. They could a dramatic turning point in the war in Ukraine, one with consequences that extend far beyond the front lines. The Trump administration is considering sending Tomahawk cruise missiles to Kiev,

a move that, if approved, would put some of America's most advanced long-range weaponry in Ukrainian hands. It comes alongside a clear policy shift in Washington and new intelligence support for Kiev, designed to hit Russia where it hurts the most, its energy revenues. So, first, the hardware. The Tomahawk missile is not new to U.S. forces, of course. It's been used for decades in conflicts from the Persian Gulf to Libya. But what makes it significant here is its reach. With a range of roughly 1,500 miles,

Tomahawks fired from inside Ukraine could strike targets across much of Russia, including Moscow. That's a capability that the Biden administration avoided granting, limiting Ukraine to shorter range attackums that max out at around 190 miles. According to reporting from the Washington Post, President Zelensky asked for the tomahawks during a sideline meeting at the UN General Assembly. President Trump's special envoy for Ukraine and Russia, retired Lieutenant General Keith Kellogg, confirmed over the weekend that the request is under serious consideration. Trump has not yet made a final decision, but officials are signaling the administration is leaning further in that direction. That alone would be newsworthy, but the timing matters because this Tomahawk discussion comes just as Kellogg has been telling American media that Washington has already authorized Ukraine to conduct certain long-range strikes inside Russia.

This is all part of a major shift in the administration's posture toward the conflict. As we've been reporting, in the past few weeks, the White House's rhetoric has become far more critical of Moscow. Trump called Russia a paper tiger, criticized Vladimir Putin directly and suggested Ukraine might actually be capable of regaining all of its lost territory. Now, there's one more piece of this story, and it has to do with intelligence. According to Reuters, the U.S. is now providing Ukraine with detailed intelligence on long-range energy infrastructure inside Russia. That includes pipelines, refineries, and power plans, the economic lifelines that generate the cash

that Moscow uses to fund its war. Two U.S. officials confirmed that the new intelligence flow has already begun, making it far easier for Ukraine to hit those facilities with drones or homegrown missiles or potentially tomahawks if they're approved. This is a significant escalation because it's not only about the weapons themselves. It's about targeting Russia's ability to wage war. By hitting energy revenue, Washington would be striking at the Kremlin's single largest source of cash, And it's being paired with economic measures, tariffs on countries that still buy Russian oil, leaning on NATO allies to diversify away from Russian supplies, and encouraging new energy deals with the U.S. and Europe.

In Moscow, the reaction has been sharp, but initially measured. Kremlin spokesman Dmitri Peskov said Russia was, quote, carefully analyzing Kellogg's comments, warning that these are very serious statements. But he also downplayed the threat, saying, quote, there is no magic weapon, whether it's tomahawks or other missiles, they will not be able to change the dynamics. Now, Russia's ambassador to the UN echoed that sentiment, arguing that Trump's desire for a quick fix won't alter the fundamental reality of the battlefield. Still, it's hard to ignore how different this moment feels compared to even a few months ago. Washington has moved from restraining Keynes' long-range ambitions to actively encouraging them.

Of course, the key question now is whether Trump will actually be. actually follow through. Vice President J.D. Vance has confirmed that no final decision has been made on the Tomahawks, but he framed Russia as refusing to engage in meaningful peace talks and suggested that more pressure is the only way forward. European officials are publicly urging Washington to send long-range missiles, not just to Ukraine, but also to Europe itself in order to, quote, control Russia's escalation and reduce the risk of a wider war.

And while Moscow insists that none of this will change the battlefield, The fact that it's reacting so carefully suggests the Kremlin is taking this development very seriously. All right, a quick note. Next week, we're premiering the fourth episode of our new podcast series, The Day the World Almost Ended. It's a look at the moments when the world stood on the brink of nuclear annihilation. If you want to catch up on the series, you can listen to the previous episodes right now by becoming a premium member of the president's daily brief.

It's very simple. Just go to pdbbpremium.com. All right, coming up next, China builds a mock Taipei in Mongolia to rehearse an invasion, and Washington slaps Iran with sweeping new sanctions targeting its weapons programs. I'll be right back. Hey, Mike Baker here. This podcast is brought to you in part by Stash. Now, what if you could start investing without ever picking a single stock? Well, with Stash, the experts handle the hard part for you.

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Upfront payment of $45 for three-month plan, equivalent to $15 per month required. intro rate first three months only, then full price plan options available. Taxes and fees extra. Seeful terms at mintmobile.com. Welcome back to the PDB. For the past few years, China has been building a replica of Taiwan's government district in Inner Mongolia, creating a sprawling mock capital where the People's Liberation Army, the PLA,

can practice on realistic facsimiles of Taipei's most iconic buildings in dress rehearsals for war. Fresh satellite imagery shows the Jurya training base. has nearly tripled in size since 2020. What began as a symbolic cluster of buildings has become a full-scale mock-up, complete with replicas of the presidential office building, the Constitutional Court building, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs,

and most recently, the Ministry of Defense Reserve Command headquarters. Analysts from the Japanese Institute for National Fundamentals, cited by Asian News International and the Taipei Times, warn the most chilling feature is the replica underground tunnel system running more than 170 miles, linking the faux presidential office with the faux court building.

The takeaway here is obvious. Taiwanese leaders shouldn't expect to survive underground if Beijing gives the order to invade. Construction of the replica presidential office began back in March of 2021, and was nearly complete by that October, according to Sentinel Hub open-source imagery. By 2022 and In 2023, follow-up images captured Chinese troops practicing urban warfare, erecting and clearing roadblocks, moving armored units, and rehearsing assaults through city streets. By March of this year, PLA soldiers were spotted training directly at the Mock Presidential compound itself. The PLA has long-staged operations at these sort of model towns, but the sheer scale and detail

and sophistication of the training base reflect Chinese President Xi Jinping's drive for innovation readiness. In July of 2015, Chinese state television broadcast footage of PLA troops storming the replica of Taipei's presidential office in what was a staged decapitation strike on the Democratic Islands leadership. Three years later, Xi himself appeared on site in military uniform, declaring that such exercises were the foundation for eventual unification by force. As we've long discussed here on the president's daily brief, China insists that Taiwan is part of its territory, despite never having ruled the island since the communist takeover of the mainland back in 1949. In March of 2024, a senior U.S. Admiral told Congress that the PLA could be fully capable

of invading Taiwan by 27, echoing Pentagon warnings that the late 2020s may be the most dangerous window for Taiwan in more than seven decades. And so, the optics are deliberate by making Makh Taipei visible from commercial satellite imagery, Beijing projects two things at once, operational readiness and psychological warfare. For Taipei, the drills underscore the urgency of bolstering defenses and deepening security ties with Washington and regional partners. For Beijing, this sprawling military training project signals resolve that the PLA is not just modernizing its military, but preparing for the day that Xi decides to move on the island. Okay. Okay. Turning to the U.S., the Trump administration rolled out a fresh round of sanctions on Iran Wednesday,

blacklisting dozens of firms and individuals tied to Iran's weapons programs. The new sanctions reinforced the snapback UN penalties that Europe invoked against Tehran's nuclear activity. The Treasury Department, coordinating with the State Department, DHS, and FBI, named 21 entities and 17 individuals accused of funneling technology for advanced surface-to-air missile system, and in one instance, securing an American manufactured helicopter for Iran's military. Treasury officials report that one sanctioned network stretched from Iran to Hong Kong and China, smuggling U.S. origin electronics into Iranian-controlled firms that build radar and missile guidance systems. It's a current critical weakness for Tehran after the June 12-day war with Israel.

Another illicit group spans Iran, Germany, Turkey, Portugal, and Uruguay. They allegedly procured a U.S.-made helicopter for Iran's Revolutionary Guard Corps. Treasury officials said it was part of Tehran's broader effort to keep its military equipment in the air, relying on covert repair chop shops and overseas supply chains. In a statement, Treasury Secretary Scott Besson declared, quote, the Iranian regime's support of terrorist proxies, and its pursuit of nuclear weapons threatens the security of the Middle East, the U.S., and our allies around the world, end quote.

As we've covered here on the PDB, these sanctions are not appearing in a vacuum. They follow Europe's decision to trigger the UN snapback mechanism. It's a move that reinstated a broad arms embargo, asset freezes, and a ban on ballistic missile development on the regime once lifted previously under that 2015 nuclear deal. For years, Britain, France, and Germany attempted to salvage the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action, pressing the Mullas to return to the nuclear deal's guided compliance, even as, inspections of the regime's nuclear sites were no longer happening. Only on September 29th, days before the October deadline under the JCPOA, did the European three finally pull the lever.

Still, the European trio stressed that, quote, the reimposition of UN sanctions is not the end of diplomacy. The impact of the snapback mechanism and Washington's latest actions are already impacting the regime. The Rial has collapsed to record lows. Food prices are spiraling, and ordinary Iranians are left scrambling to buy basics. The Iranian citizens are paying the price for their rulers continue belligerence and diversion of money to their weapons programs and away from basic needs and infrastructure for the population.

And while Tehratan has long insisted its nuclear program was peaceful, Western intelligence and the International Atomic Energy Agency remind anyone listening that Iran has repeatedly broken terms of agreements in the past, and its enrichment levels prior to the United States. to the U.S. strikes on the regime's nuclear facilities earlier this summer far exceeded civilian thresholds and requirements. So the pressure on the mulles is mounting. With sanctions compounding, cash reserves shrinking, and its military supply chains under siege, the regime appears to be running out of options. All right. Coming up in the back of the brief, one million pounds of cocaine is now off the streets. The historic drug seizures are reportedly the largest in U.S. history and have dealt a major blow.

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Visit Carvana.com to sell your car today. Carvana. Pick up fees may apply. In today's back of the brief, as we've been tracking here on the PDB, the Trump administration has been intensifying their crackdown on the drug trafficking operations of Latin America's powerful cartels, and their efforts are yielding historic results. U.S. Southern Command's Joint Interagency Task Force South announced this week that their forces seized a staggering 1 million pounds of cocaine during fiscal year 2025, shattering previous

records. The magnitude of the drug seizures is hard to overstate. Officials with the task force said the hall represents roughly 378 million lethal doses of cocaine, enough to fill some 42 dump trucks, according to a report from Fox News. The seizures of the past 12 months have caused the region's drug cartels and narco-terrorists roughly $11.34 billion in revenue, and it's over $11 billion in revenue. In a statement, U.S. Southern Command said, quote, by disrupting the flow of these deadly drugs, the task force is saving lives and protecting our homeland. For some background, the Joint Interagency Task Force South,

operates across some 42 million square miles from the eastern Pacific to the western Atlantic. It's a region that has long served as a major trafficking corridor for drugs and arms and cash and people. Southern Command said the historic interdictions were carried out in close coordination with the U.S. Navy, the Coast Guard, interagency partners, and like-minded nations across South America, Central America, and the Caribbean. Officials noted their tally does not include drugs destroyed by recent U.S. military strikes on Venezuelan narco-terrorists, which first began in early September. As our regular listeners are aware, the Trump administration has taken significant measures

to essentially militarize their operations as part of the overall counter-narcotic strategy. Shortly after returning to office, President Trump designated Venezuela's trend to Al-Agua, El Salvador's MS-13, and six cartels based in Mexico as foreign terrorist organizations. It was a critical step in combating their criminal schemes, the designation gave U.S. authorities expanded powers to freeze assets, disrupt financing, and pursue cartel leadership, with tools traditionally reserved for international counterterrorism operations. In recent months, the White House has deployed four guided missile destroyers to the region, alongside cruisers, submarines, amphibious ships carrying Marines, and surveillance aircraft. The U.S. Coast Guard

has also tripled their operational presence in the heavily trafficked waters to better secure America's maritime borders. Additionally, the administration has set their sights squarely on Venezuelan dictator Nicholas Maduro, offering a $50 million bounty for information leading to his arrest. U.S. authorities, alleged Maduro, and senior members of his military, serve as the de facto leaders of the country's cartel of the Suns, flooding the region with drugs and facilitating the migration of TDA gang members directly into the U.S. As for the rest of the region's most powerful cartels, Trump's cracker.

has thrown their operations into something you could call chaos. An alleged leader of Mexico's Sinaloa cartel admitted to CNN this week that the Trump administration's actions are significantly disrupting their criminal operations. And that, my friends, is the President's Daily Brief for Friday the 3rd of October. Now, if you have any questions or comments, please reach out to me at PDB at thefirsttv.com. And word on the street is that it's Friday. And according to credible scuttlebutt, Friday, mean new episodes of our extended weekend show, the PDB Situation Report.

Now, you can catch it starting at 10 p.m. on the first TV. And, of course, on our YouTube channel, you can find that, well, on YouTube, of course, at President's Daily Brief, and podcast platforms all over podcast land. I'm Mike Baker, and I'll be back later today with the PDB afternoon bulletin. Until then, stay informed. Stay safe. Stay cool. Starting a business can seem like a daunting task. unless you have a partner like Shopify.

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