The President's Daily Brief - PDB Afternoon Bulletin | May 19th, 2025: How China Helped Pakistan Shoot Down Indian Jets & IDF Begins Massive Ground Offensive In Gaza

Episode Date: May 19, 2025

In this episode of The PDB Afternoon Bulletin:  First, amid the fragile ceasefire between India and Pakistan, we’re now learning that China played a direct role in helping the Pakistani military shoot down Indian fighter jets earlier this month, a revelation that risks deepening tensions between the nuclear-armed neighbors. Later in the show—Israel begins large-scale ground operations across the Gaza Strip as part of a major new offensive that aims dismantle Hamas’ remaining military capabilities and take full control of the battered enclave. 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 TriTails Premium Beef: Visit https://TryBeef.com/PDB for 2 free Flat Iron steaks with your first box over $250 Kikoff: Build credit fast and get your first month for just a dollar at https://GetKikoff.com/mike today. Thanks to Kikoff for sponsoring us! Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

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It's Monday, the 19th of May. 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, an update on the current and admittedly somewhat fragile ceasefire between India and Pakistan, as we learned that China played a direct role in helping the Pakistani military shoot down Indian fighter jets during the brief clash over Kashmir earlier this month. We'll discuss the implications for regional stability. Later in the show, Israel begins large-scale ground operations against the Gaza Strip as part of a major new offensive that aims to dismantle Hamas' remaining military capabilities and take full control of the battered enclave.

But first, today's afternoon spotlight. Amid the fragile ceasefire between India and Pakistan, we're now learning that China played a direct role in assisting Islamabad in the shooting down of Indian fighter jets earlier this month, a revelation that risks deepening tensions between the nuclear-armed neighbors. According to Indian defense officials, Chinese military advisors assisted Pakistan in repositioning its radar systems and satellite coverage just days before the aerial clash, enabling Islamabad to track Indian aircraft, weaponry, and troop movements in real time.

The collaboration reportedly followed the, the 22 April terror attack in Indian-administered Kashmir that left 26 tourists dead. An assault New Delhi insists was a work of Islamabad-backed Islamic terrorists. Pakistan, of course, continues to deny any involvement or responsibility. Ashok Kumar, Director General of the Center for Joint Warfare Studies in New Delhi, that's a think tank under India's Ministry of Defense, told reporters that Chinese personnel worked side by side with Pakistani forces to recalibrate the air defense systems and enhance surveillance capabilities ahead of the confrontation. Now, as we covered here on the BDB,

India responded to the Kashmir attack with cross-border airstrikes on the 7th of May, targeting what it claimed were nine terrorist camps operating inside Pakistani territory. Islamabad countered with its own show of force, claiming it shot down six Indian fighter jets, including three French-made twin-engine fighters. India has yet to confirm or deny the alleged losses. Crucially, Pakistani forces utilize Chinese-made J-10C jets in the retaliatory strikes, also deploying the Beijing-developed PL-15 long-range air-to-air missile, which had never been used in combat before. That detail has alarmed defense analysts across Asia, particularly in Taiwan, which could face similar tactics in future conflict. Adding to the intrigue, Pakistan's foreign minister, Ishak Dar, told Parliament that

a high-level Chinese diplomatic and military delegation, led by Beijing's ambassador, was already at the foreign ministry on the morning of the strikes. Dar said, quote, we apprised them about all the developments taking place until that time, and they were very happy, end quote. Behind the scenes, analysts from the Center for Joint Warfare Studies believe Beijing may have used the skirmish to field test its defense tech under live combat conditions. Officially, India has not confirmed China's role, and Beijing, for its part, has issued no denial. Still, in a carefully worded statement on Monday, China's foreign ministry called for maintaining a, quote, full and lasting ceasefire, adding that it would continue to play a, quote, constructive role in maintaining peace and stability

in the region. Now, I'm not sure if constructive role means what they think it means. As we noted last week, President Trump announced what he described as a, quote, immediate ceasefire on the 10th of May, following high-level engagement with both New Delhi and Islamabad. The truce has largely held so far, but analysts warned the region remains on edge, after what many describe as the most serious military confrontation between the nuclear rivals in more than four decades. Meanwhile, Pakistani foreign minister Dar is currently in Beijing for a three-day visit, where he's expected to hold, quote, in-depth discussions with his Chinese counterpart on regional security and the broader bilateral relationship. As Pakistan and China, tightened military

and diplomatic ties, India faces a growing strategic challenge, grappling with Islamabad's cross-border militancy, but also Beijing's role as a silent power broker in South Asia. Now, the situation is a very interesting example of shifting alliances and geopolitical landings. The script has been flipped, essentially, over the past several years, with India, long an ally of Russia and the former Soviet Union, now aligning itself more closely with the U.S., while Pakistan, once a relatively close ally of the U.S., now building closer alliances with both Russia and China. Coming up next, Israel begins large-scale ground operations across the Gaza Strip. I'll be right back.

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The offensive follows a week of intensified air strikes launched by the Israeli Air Force, across Gaza and vows by Prime Minister Netanyahu to eradicate Hamas once and for all, according to her report from ABC News. The campaign, which is expected to last a year, barring any diplomatic breakthroughs, seeks to achieve, quote, all the goals of the war in Gaza by destroying Hamas's military and governing capabilities and taking full control of the Gaza's strip. Israeli leaders hope to apply enough sustained pressure to force the terror group into agreeing to a ceasefire and releasing the remaining hostages. While details of the ground offensive are not yet entirely clear, in a statement on Sunday,

the IDF said, quote, over the past day IDF troops in the Southern Command, both the Standing Army and Reserves, began a broad ground operation throughout the northern and southern Gaza Strip as part of the start of Operation Gideon's chariots, end quote. The campaign's name is a reference to the biblical figure of Gideon, a military leader and judge in ancient Israel, who was said to have led the Jewish people to victory against their adversaries. As we previously discussed on the PDB, the sweeping plan to expand their military campaign to seize and hold the entirety of the Gaza Strip was unanimously approved by Israel's security cabinet back on the 5th of May. IDF officials said their troops had already,

quote, dismantled terrorist infrastructure sites above and below ground, and are currently being deployed in key positions within Gaza. They're particularly focused, under the United States. They're particularly focused on destroying Hamas's remaining weapons depots, terror cells, tunnel networks, and anti-tank launch sites, according to a report from the New York Post. Officials said five army divisions, numbering tens of thousands of soldiers, are involved in the new offensive, though as a Sunday night, they had yet to reach the center of major cities like Gaza City and Con Unis, as they did in the early days of the war following Hamas's brutal seven-October attacks. The collateral damage of the renewed offensive already appears to be quite high, with the Hamas-run Ministry of Health

claiming Israeli airstrikes over the weekend killed at least 103 people, though, as always, we should note that those figures do not differentiate between civilians and terrorist fighters. Officials with the IDF blamed Hamas for the civilian deaths, saying the group was still primarily operating in residential areas in order to use a local population as human shields. On Monday, the IDF warned residents of the southern city of Con Unis to evacuate to the coast immediately as they gear up for a major attack. As we touched on last week, Israel said the campaign will likely displace roughly half of Gaza's civilian population, over one million of the enclave's roughly 2.3 million population.

Critically, unlike past operations inside Gaza, Israeli defense minister Israel Katz, said IDF forces will remain inside captured areas. of the enclave after the operation is completed in order to prevent Hamas from reconstituting. Meanwhile, in a somewhat surprising reversal, Netanyahu said Monday that as the operation unfolds, Israel will lift their blockade of humanitarian aid into Gaza in order to address the looming threat of widespread famine. The shift in policy is thought to be due to increased pressure put on Israeli leaders by the Trump White House and other key allies who argued that extending the blockade would risk undermining international support for Israel's efforts to destroy Hamas.

On the diplomatic front, Israeli officials resumed indirect ceasefire talks with Hamas in the Qatari capital of Doha on Saturday, though reports indicate that little progress has been made. Israel has maintained their position that, to end the war, all of the remaining 58 hostages, living and dead, must be released, and that the terror group must demilitarize and exit Gaza forever. Hamas has flatly rejected those terms, instead demanding a ceasefire that sees Israel withdraw from the enclave before the remaining hostages are freed. And that, my friends, is the PDB afternoon bulletin for Monday, the 19th of May. Now, if you have any questions or comments, please reach out to me at PDB at thefirsttv.com.

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