The President's Daily Brief - PDB Afternoon Bulletin | July 8th, 2026: U.S. Launches Strikes On Iran & Russia Targets Starlink

Episode Date: July 8, 2026

In this episode of The PDB Afternoon Bulletin: The fragile ceasefire between the United States and Iran appears to have collapsed after Tehran's attack on commercial shipping in the Strait of Hormuz triggered a new round of U.S. military strikes and Iranian retaliation. We break down the latest developments and what they could mean for the future of the conflict. Russia is reportedly deploying powerful electronic warfare systems to jam Elon Musk's Starlink satellite network in an effort to disrupt Ukraine's growing fleet of long-range strike drones. We examine the next phase of the drone war and why control of the electromagnetic spectrum is becoming increasingly critical on the battlefield. 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 Acre Gold: Turn your pocket change into physical 24-karat gold and enter to win a limited-edition Hot Wheels gold bar at https://GetAcreGold.com/PDB QUO: Make this the season where no opportunity slips away. Try QUO for free PLUS get 20% off your first 6 months when you go to https://Quo.com/PDB Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Hey, Mike Baker here. Now, here's a question for you. What do dictators do after work? Did you see that coming? As it turns out, some become movie fanatics, some write books, and some even rap on state television. This week's subscriber-exclusive episode of the PDB dictator files explores the surprisingly strange hobbies of history's strongmen and what they reveal about the nature of absolute power. You can hear it now at PDB Premium.com. It's Wednesday, the 8th of July. Welcome to the PDB afternoon bulletin. I'm Mike Baker, your eyes and ears on the world stage. All right, let's get briefed.

First up, the ceasefire, well, the sort of ceasefire between the U.S. and Iran appears to have collapsed after Tahran's attack on commercial shipping in the Strait of Hormuz. I'll have the latest. Later in the show, Russia is trying to jam Elon Musk. Starlink Network in an effort to blunt Ukraine's expanding drone campaign. But first, today's afternoon spotlight. The ceasefire between the U.S. and Iran appears to be over. Overnight, American forces launched a new wave of strikes against Iranian military targets after the regime attacked three commercial vessels transiting the Strait of Hormuz earlier this week. Iran has since

retaliated with missile and drone attacks targeting U.S. military installations in Bahrain and Kuwait, prompting President Trump to declare that, as far as he's concerned, the interim agreement or memorandum of understanding or whatever we wanted to call it, reached last month, is now finished. Now, before we get into the latest developments, a quick reminder. Yesterday here on the PDB, we told you about the attacks on the commercial ships in the Strait of Hormuz. It's a clear violation of the ceasefire framework that was supposed to guarantee safe passage through one of the world's most important waterways. Well, overnight, Washington answered. According to U.S. Central Command, American forces launched a series of

precision strikes against Iranian military infrastructure along the country's southern coast. Officials say the operation targeted air defense systems, coastal radar installations, surveillance sites, drone launch positions, anti-ship cruise missiles, and more than 60 fast attack boats belonging to Iran's Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps, the IRGC. Those are the small craft that the Guard uses as part of their effort to harass commercial shipping in the Persian Gulf. In a statement, CENTCOM said the strikes were intended to, quote, impose heavy costs on Iran for attacking innocent civilian shipping in international waters. The military added that the operation has concluded for now, but warned that U.S. forces remain fully prepared to respond again,

should Iran continue violating the agreement? Iranian state media acknowledged explosions near Bandaurabas, Keshem Island and several other coastal locations, though officials have not released casualty figures or provided an assessment of the damage. But Washington's response wasn't limited to military action. In a move that could ultimately prove just as consequential, the Trump administration also revoked the recently approved Treasury license that had allowed Iran to openly sell crude oil on international markets as part of last month's MOU. That license represented one of Tehran's biggest economic victories under the ceasefire. For the first time in years, Iran had been permitted to conduct oil sales openly and receive payment in U.S. dollars, rather than relying on sanctions of Asian

networks and discounted sales primarily to China. With that waiver now revoked, the economic pressure campaign against the Iranian regime appears to be back on. Iran, for its part, quickly condemned both the military strikes and the restoration of oil sanctions, accusing Washington of violating the ceasefire agreement. Iranian officials argued that the U.S. had breached the deal, not only by attacking Iranian territory, but also by refusing to recognize Tehran's claimed authority over shipping routes through the Strait of Khormuz, and by continuing to support Israeli military operations against Hezbollah in Lebanon, and the Iranian regime said all of that with a straight face.

Iranian Parliament Speaker Mohamed Bagar Galibov declared that, quote, the era of bullying and extortion is over. We don't fold, end quote. And then hours later, Iran responded militarily. Air raid sirens sounded across both Bahrain and Kuwait, after Iranian forces launched what officials described as a coordinated barrage of missiles and drones targeting American military facilities. Iran's Revolutionary Guard claimed responsibility for attacks against the U.S. 5th Fleet

headquarters in Bahrain, the Ali al-Salem Air Base in Kuwait, and other American military positions across the Gulf. Kuwaiti officials say at least two ballistic missiles and 13 drones were launched toward their territory, though all were reportedly intercepted before reaching their targets. Bahrain likewise announced that its air defenses successfully thwarted incoming Iranian attacks. There have been no reports of casualties. The IRGC also claimed that it shot down a US MQ9 Reaper drone during the operation, though American officials have not confirmed that assertion. The renewed fighting is already reverberating well beyond the battlefield. Several oil and liquefied natural gas takers reportedly turned around, rather than

attempt passage to the Strait of Hormuz following the latest attacks, highlighting the continued instability in and around the waterway. Brent crude prices surged more than 5% following the exchange of strikes, while global equity markets slipped amid renewed fears that the conflict could once again and disrupt energy supplies. Qatar, whose liquefied natural gas carrier was among the vessels targeted earlier this week, issued one of its strongest statements yet, holding Iran fully responsible for what it described as an unacceptable attack on international navigation and global energy security.

And then gave the clearest indication yet that diplomacy may have run its course. Speaking to reporters during the NATO summit in Turkey, President Trump was asked whether the interim agreement signed in June, the MOU, was now effectively dead. His answer was blunt. He said, quote, for me, I think it's over. Trump went on to dismiss the ongoing negotiations saying that while Iran could continue talking, he believed they were simply wasting everyone's time.

Now, whether that ultimately becomes official U.S. policy remains to be seen. Trump has at times made forceful public statements only to leave room for negotiations behind the scenes. But taken together with the overnight military strikes and the decision to revoke Iran's oil waiver, Washington is signaling that the rules governing last month ceasefire or MOU may no longer apply. And that brings us to the broader picture. The interim agreement reached in June rested on two central pillars. First, Iran would allow commercial shipping to move safely through the Strait of Hormuz. Second, in exchange, the U.S. would provide limited sanctions relief, including allowing Tehran

to openly export its oil while negotiations continued toward a permanent settlement. Today, both of those pillars have effectively collapsed. Iran, since the signing of the MOU, has sporadically attacked commercial shipping, and the U.S. has responded yet again, but this time, not only with military force, but by stripping away one of Tehran's most valuable economic concessions. Where all this leaves the conflict is unclear. We have seen a somewhat consistent pattern over the past many weeks. Iran targets shipping in the waterway. The U.S. retaliates in limited fashion. The White House then says despite the altercations, negotiations are ongoing and a deal may be within reach, and then the Iranian regime dismisses claims of progress in negotiations.

Rince, wash, repeat. Despite Trump's latest comments about the MOU or ceasefire being over, he then did follow up with comments that indicated he wasn't interested in returning to war. Yet at some point, the regime's belligerence and inability to change their stripes may force the White House back into open conflict. We will likely know soon enough. All right, coming up next, Russia is going after one of Ukraine's most important battlefield tools, and that would be Starlink. Ukrainian commanders say Moscow is using powerful jammers to disrupt drone strikes behind Russian lines. I'll be right back. Hey, Mike Baker here.

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Welcome back to the PDB afternoon bulletin. For months, one of Ukraine's most effective web, weapons has been relatively inexpensive drones flying dozens of miles behind Russian lines, hunting fuel depots, air defense sites, and supply convoys with remarkable precision. Now, Russia is scrambling to catch up. Ukrainian drone commanders, say Moscow, has begun disguising fuel shipments in an effort to avoid targeting and deploying powerful electronic warfare systems designed to disrupt one of Kiev's biggest battlefield advantages, and that would be Elon Musk's Starlink satellite network. The change has come after Ukraine's sustained drone campaign

exposed one of Russia's biggest vulnerabilities, battering its logistics network and even helping trigger fuel shortages in Russian-occupied Crimea. So what's actually changing here? Well, for starters, Russia is being forced to rethink something as basic as moving fuel to the front. A new Reuters report from Ukraine's southern front offers a glimpse into just how much those strikes are changing Russia's battlefield tactics. Commanders from Keynes 422nd Unmanned Systems Regiment says Russian forces are disguising gasoline shipments and vehicles painted to resemble civilian trucks and water tankers. And the desperate effort doesn't stop there. Ukraine's drone commanders say Russian troops are increasingly moving fuel, ammunition and other military supplies in ordinary

passenger cars or motorcycles and quad bikes, while taking back roads all in an effort to make themselves harder for Ukrainian drones to find. One commander described just how deceptive those tactics have become, telling loiterers, quote, we hit water tankers and the tankers were burning because there was gasoline inside. We've hit painted up milk trucks that had diesel fuel in them. But camouflage is only part of Russia's response. The bigger development is electronic warfare. Ukraine's defense ministry says Moscow has begun deploying a powerful jamming system known as the Volna Kupol-Garant, placing the units near towns and military facilities in an effort to interfere with Starlink. Most of Ukraine's longer-range mid-strike missions rely on Starlink.

That satellite link has allowed Ukrainian drone operators to fly deep behind Russian lines and strike valuable military targets at a fraction of the cost of traditional missiles. So if Russia can disrupt that connection, well, it's a blow to one of Ukraine's biggest battlefield advantages. An advisor at the Ukrainian Defense Ministry says the Russian jamming system emits a lot of Ukraine. signal powerful enough to destabilize Starlink connections across an area of roughly eight square miles. The Ministry says they've identified about 10 of the systems so far. But Ukraine isn't simply accepting the new threat. Dron crews say the jamming systems have become priority targets themselves.

The 422nd Regiment says it's helped destroy two of the installations so far, including one that was struck just hours after being detected during a joint operation with Ukraine. security service. Following that operation, one Ukrainian drone commander told Reuters, quote, as soon as we struck that installation, our Starlink-equipped drones flew without problems, end quote. It's also worth remembering that this isn't happening in a vacuum. Earlier this year, you may recall that Musk's SpaceX company cut Russian forces off from using Starlink for their own drone operations. Now, Moscow appears to be pursuing the next best option, denying Ukraine access to the same battlefield advantage. And that really speaks to the pattern we've seen across this war.

Ukraine develops a new battlefield capability. Russia eventually comes up with a countermeasure. Ukraine adapts, and then the cycle starts all over again. And that, my friends, is the PDB afternoon bulletin for Wednesday, the 8th of July. Now, if you have any questions or comments, and I hope you do, please reach out to me at pdb at thefirsttv.com. And to listen to the show, ad-free, you can do that. It's very, very, very. simple, just become a premium member of the President's Daily Brief by visiting PDB Premium.com. I'm Mike Baker, and I'll be back tomorrow, still from the road. Until then, stay informed, stay safe, stay cool.