The President's Daily Brief - PDB Afternoon Bulletin | July 23rd, 2026: Has Russia Entered The Iran War? & Ukraine’s Drone Breakthrough

Episode Date: July 23, 2026

In this episode of The PDB Afternoon Bulletin: First— U.S. intelligence officials are investigating whether Russia helped Iran target CIA facilities across the Middle East, raising new questions about how deeply Moscow may be involved in Tehran’s war effort. Later— The United States and Ukraine reach a landmark drone agreement that could bring combat-tested Ukrainian technology to America for evaluation, joint production, and eventual use by the Pentagon. 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/@presidentsdailybrief Goldbelly: Impress your family and friends - get free shipping and 20% off your first order at https://GOLDBELLY.com with code PDB Poncho Outdoors: Gear up for summer with Poncho and grab $10 off plus free shipping at https://ponchooutdoors.com/PDB HomeServe: Protect your home systems from expensive repairs with https://HomeServe.com/dailybrief and get 50% off your first year of coverage. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

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missile technology, and other military assistance. But now, U.S. intelligence officials are investigating something that could mark a far more significant escalation, whether Moscow helped Tehran target and strike CIA facilities across the Middle East. If that allegation is ultimately confirmed, it would suggest Russia has crossed an important line. Supplying weapons to an ally is one thing. Helping that ally locate and attack America's intelligence infrastructure is, well, something else entirely. According to an exclusive report from Reuters, U.S. intelligence analysts are examining whether Russia provided targeting information or

advanced drone technology that enabled recent Iranian attacks on CIA facilities in Saudi Arabia, Iraq, and possibly elsewhere in the region. Now, before we go any further, it's important to emphasize that investigators have not reached a firm conclusion. Intelligence officials are still evaluating the evidence, and analysts remain divided over exactly what role, if any, Moscow may have played. And that's an important distinction. Still, the fact that the intelligence community is asking the question, that tells us something. One of the attacks under scrutiny reportedly targeted the U.S. Embassy in Riyadh, that's in Saudi Arabia, of course, where the CIA station is reportedly supposedly housed. According to Western officials cited by Reuters, the strike involved two drones.

The first punched a hole through a vulnerable section of the embassy's exterior. The second reportedly flew through that opening before detonating inside. There were no reported deaths or injuries from that attack. Another CIA-related facility in eastern Iraq was also reportedly struck, and sources told Reuters that several additional intelligence sites may have been targeted as well, though they declined to identify their locations. Now, successfully identifying sensitive intelligence facilities is, as you might suspect, somewhat more difficult than locating a military airfield or a naval base.

According to Reuters, one internal assessment from a Western intelligence service concluded that Russia likely played some role in helping target regional CIA facilities. Other Western officials believe the drones used in the Saudi attack were upgraded versions of Iran's Shahed drones that had been enhanced with Russian technology. And that technology enhancement, well, that's significant in its own right. Earlier this year, reports emerged that Russia had supplied Iran with a Kometa M satellite navigation system, which experts say is substantially more accurate and far more resistant to electronic jamming than Iran's domestically produced equipment.

U.S. officials have also previously acknowledged that Russia has provided various forms of targeting and technical assistance to Iran during the conflict. What investigators are now trying to determine is whether that assistance extended beyond improving Iranian weapons and into helping Tehran directly target some of America's most sensitive intelligence sites. There are, however, other possible explanations. Some analysts believe Iran may simply have been aiming for the U.S. embassy in Riyadh generally, rather than specifically targeting the CIA station inside. If that's true, well, the damage to the intelligence facility could have been incidental. rather than intentional, perhaps. But if Russia did knowingly assist in identifying CIA facilities,

the implications would be significant. For years, Moscow and Tehran have steadily expanded their military partnership. Russia has relied heavily on Iranian drones in Ukraine. Iran has benefited from Russian military technology, intelligence cooperation, and diplomatic backing. As a conflict between Washington and Tehran is intensified, that relationship appears to have deepened. and even further. Of course, Russia does have every incentive from their perspective to keep the U.S. tied down in the Middle East while Washington continues supporting Ukraine. Every additional military deployment, intelligence asset, and diplomatic resource devoted to Iran is one less available elsewhere. Supporting Tehran also allows Moscow to pressure the U.S. without placing Russian troops

directly in harm's way. For now, the evidence remains incomplete and the investigation is ongoing. going. If the suspicions are ultimately confirmed, it would represent a significant escalation in Russia's involvement in the conflict, and one that the White House would almost certainly be forced to answer. All right, coming up next. Ukraine's battlefield innovations are coming to the U.S. as Washington signs a breakthrough agreement to test and potentially produce Keeb's combat-proven drones. I'll be right back. Hey, Mike Baker here, with a message for food lovers everywhere. Have you heard of Gold Belly?

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That's Poncho, P-O-N-C-H-O, just like it sounds, poncho outdoors.com slash PDB. Head over there, drop in your email, and get $10 off and free shipping. And once you try one, well, you'll understand why I've got a closet full of them. Welcome back to the PDB afternoon bulletin. The U.S. and Ukraine have signed an unprecedented agreement laying the groundwork for Ukrainian

combat drones to be exported to the U.S. for military testing, giving the Pentagon direct access to some of the world's most battle-tested unmanned technologies. An exclusive report from Radio Free Europe and Radio Liberty indicates the breakthrough finally arrived after months of negotiations. According to two sources familiar with the agreement, one official said, quote, the deal has been sealed, while another confirmed the document has. has been, quote, signed by both sides. But the story behind this agreement really begins with how dramatically Vladimir Putin's war transformed Ukraine's defense industry. Four years ago, Keev was almost entirely dependent on Western military aid to defend itself against Russia's full-scale invasion.

Today, Ukraine has become one of the world's leading developers of low-cost combat-proven drones, producing everything from first-person-view-attack drones to maritime systems that have repeatedly struck Russia's Black Sea fleet. Those battlefield successes have obviously been studied carefully in Washington. As Pentagon planners look ahead to potential future wars with Russia, China, and the current conflict with Iran, of course, they increasingly came to the same conclusion. If you want to understand where drone warfare is headed, there's no better laboratory than Ukraine's battlefield. So, what exactly did the two countries sign? Well, I'm glad you asked. At the center of the deal is a bilateral statement of intent. That's the first agreement of its kind between Washington and Kyiv focused on drone

cooperation. It's important to point out that this is not a production contract, at least not yet. Instead, it establishes the first formal framework for long-term defense industrial cooperation and creates a pathway for Ukrainian land, air, and maritime drones to be exported to the U.S. for testing and evaluation. Under the arrangement, the Pentagon will be able to request specific Ukrainian drone platforms for testing and assessment, not operational deployment. It gives American defense planners the opportunity to study technologies that have already been proven under some of the harshest combat conditions and determine whether those lessons should influence future Pentagon procurement efforts. The agreement comes as the Department of Defense, or Department of War, if you

prefer the newer title, accelerates its emerging drone dominance initiative, that's a billion-dollar competition designed to rapidly identify and field affordable combat effective unmanned systems. Dozens of manufacturers compete in realistic battlefield challenges designed to identify which drones can survive modern combat, not just perform well in testing. Pentagon officials say six Ukrainian manufacturers have already been cleared to export roughly 100 drones each to participate in the drone dominance evaluation program. The statement of intent is widely viewed as the first concrete step toward a much broader U.S.-Ukraine Defense Industrial Partnership, one that could eventually include joint production of Ukrainian-designed drones in the U.S.,

and integrate Ukrainian manufacturers into the American Defense Industrial Base for the first time. That process may already be getting underway. Ukrainian autonomous systems developer U-Force signed a memorandum of understanding with Oregon-based shipbuilder reconcraft to manufacture Ukraine's combat-proven maritime drones in the U.S. this week. Production is eventually expected to reach hundreds and ultimately thousands of vessels for potential U.S. Navy procurement. The timing is particularly notable because it comes after U.S. forces use unmanned surface vessels against Iranian naval targets for the first time earlier this month. So for Washington, the agreement provides immediate access to rapidly evolving

low-cost drone technology refined through years of real combat. While for Ukraine, the agreement It marks another major step toward integrating its defense industry into Western production and procurement networks, transforming battle-tested innovation into long-term partnerships with the U.S. And that, my friends, is the PDB afternoon bulletin for Thursday, the 23rd of July. Now, if you have any questions or comments, just reach out to me at PDB at thefirsttv.com. And to listen to the show ad-free, that is very doable. Just become a premium member of the President's Daily Brief by visiting PDB premium. I told you it was simple. I'm Mike Baker, and I'll be back tomorrow. Until then, stay informed.

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