The President's Daily Brief - PDB Afternoon Bulletin | November 13th, 2025: European Leaders Turn on Zelensky & Rubio Fires Back at EU Over Narco-Strikes

Episode Date: November 19, 2025

In this episode of The PDB Afternoon Bulletin: The latest on the corruption scandal rocking Kyiv. Ukraine’s wartime government is under growing strain as senior ministers resign, international critics step in, and questions mount over how close the crisis is getting to President Zelensky. Senator Marco Rubio fires back at European allies who are raising concerns about America’s expanding military campaign against narco-traffickers in the Caribbean. 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 DeleteMe: Get 20% off your DeleteMe plan when you go to https://joindeleteme.com/BRIEF and use promo code BRIEF at checkout. TriTails Premium Beef: Feed your legacy. Visit https://trybeef.com/pdb  Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

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Later in the show, U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio is firing back at European allies over concerns about America's military campaign against narco-traffickers in the Caribbean. But first, today's afternoon spotlight. We're getting more information about that corruption scandal currently rocking Kyiv. It's a $100 million kickback scheme inside Ukraine's energy sector. As we reported yesterday, investigators from Ukraine's Anti-Corruption Bureau raided homes and offices across the capital, uncovering what they say is a massive network of inflated contracts and phantom construction projects inside the state nuclear company. That investigation has already reached dangerously close to

President Zelensky through his former business partner and media mogul Timor Mindich. Now, that's the man that Ukrainian agents say fled the country just hours before they arrived. But overnight, the scandal exploded even further. Ukraine's Justice Minister, Hermane Ghalchenko, who previously served as energy minister during the years that those contracts were issued, has now submitted his resignation after agents searched his home. And he wasn't the only one. The current energy minister, Svidlana Friedrich, has also stepped aside as prosecutors widened their probe. That means two of the most senior officials responsible for keeping Ukraine's power grid alive during wartime are now out, not because of Russian attacks, but because of corruption allegations

tied to the very systems Ukraine is begging the West to help reinforce. NABU, the Anti-Corruption Bureau, has now formally charged seven suspects and detained at least five others, including senior energy sector figures accused of siphoning money away from grid protection projects that were supposed to shield the country from Russian missile strikes. This comes at a time when rolling blackouts are intensifying across Ukraine, making the alleged graft feel for many Ukrainians like sabotage from within. Some local officials warned that if the stolen funds had gone where they were intended, several of the grid failures that Ukraine has suffered this month might have been avoided. As for Mindich, the oligarch connected to Zelensky's old production company,

prosecutors say new financial evidence has emerged that ties him more directly to the inflated contracts. Ukrainian officials confirm the FBI is reviewed. viewing his overseas financial activity, raising the stakes beyond Keeves' borders. For Zelensky, the optics are potentially devastating. Two cabinet-level officials gone, a fugitive ex-associate under investigation, and a corruption case involving infrastructure that Western governments have poured billions into. European leaders are already signaling concern, of course, hinting that this could affect Ukraine's standing in ongoing aid talks and even EU membership discussions. And in Washington,

U.S. officials confirmed that they've been briefed on the investigation, a sign that Kiev is under pressure not just from Europe, but from its most important military backer. And now the international fallout is starting, with Hungary's Prime Minister, Victor Orban, notably, of course, a Putin apologist and ally, using the scandal to take direct aim at Zelensky. Orban said the unfolding corruption case proves what he calls the, quote, golden illusion of Ukraine has collapsed. In a message posted to X, the Hungarian Prime Minister wrote, quote, A wartime mafia network with countless ties to Zelensky has been exposed. He also argued the scandals should force Brussels to rethink Ukraine's accession bid altogether.

Why, it almost sounds like Moscow is busy fanning the flames of this fire. Now, don't get me wrong, now I'm not doubting that there's corruption within the Ukrainian ranks. But if you don't think the Kremlin is actively working to take advantage of this situation and through a covert action campaign of disinformation and propaganda, well, then you don't understand the nature of Russian intel operations. Putin sees this scandal, no doubt, as a massive opportunity. Now, Orban's comments landed sharply in key. His criticism taps into American skepticism about Zelensky's government,

skepticism that could directly affect U.S. support as Ukraine heads into another winter under Russian attack. While sympathy for Ukraine remains high, especially in Europe, it's easy to forget that the country has struggled with systemic corruption for a long time. Even before Russia's invasion, Ukraine consistently ranked near the bottom of global transparency indexes, and it's a legacy that Zelensky had promised to break from, but one that continues to haunt his presidency. For his part, Ukraine's president addressed the scandal again late last night during his regular video message. Zelensky insisted that, quote, no one will be protected and pledged full transparency. But inside Keefe, the political mood has shifted.

Some lawmakers say the controversy risks becoming the biggest internal crisis of Zelensky's presidency, larger even than past disputes over his control of anti-corruption agencies. Before we take a quick break, just a reminder, if you haven't already, make sure you're subscribed to the president's daily brief wherever you get your podcasts. It's the easiest way to stay ahead of the world's biggest national security stories every single morning and afternoon. So while you're thinking about it, hit that subscribe button now. The entire PDB team is very grateful for your support. All right.

Coming up next, Secretary of State Marker Rubio is at the G7 meeting in Canada this week. That sounds like fun. Fending off accusations that America strikes on narco-terrorists in the Caribbean are unlawful. I'll be right back. Starting a business can seem like a daunting task, unless you have a partner like Shopify. They have the tools you need to start and grow your business. From designing a website to marketing to selling and beyond,

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brief at checkout. Again, the only way to get that 20% off is to go to join-deleteme.com slash brief and enter code brief at checkout. That's join deleteme.com slash brief, code brief. Welcome back to the afternoon bulletin. Secretary of State Marco Rubio is brushing off European criticism of U.S. military strikes on narco-traffickers in the Caribbean, reminding allies that it's Washington, not Brussels, that sets the terms of America's national security. Rubio carried that message with him as he wrapped up the group of seven or G7 Foreign Ministers' meeting in Canada Wednesday, a gathering nominally focused on Ukraine, but that was quickly overshadowed by Europe's unease over the Trump administration's expanding military campaign

in the Caribbean. Some ministers arrived ready to lecture Washington about international law regarding the operations, but none of them, Rubio says, brought it up when they were actually across the table from him. Instead, the pushback surfaced after the meeting, aimed at cameras. Well, that's the best place to do this, isn't it? Rather than the Secretary of State himself. And Rubio didn't hesitate to point out the split between public outrage and private silence. If Europe is genuinely alarmed, he argued, you wouldn't know it from the G7 session that he just left. French foreign minister Jean-Nuel Barreau was one of the first to take issue, claiming the U.S. operations, quote, violate international law

and warning about the implications of military operations near France's Caribbean territories. EU foreign policy chief, Gaiacalas, echoed that concern, telling Reuters the strikes could be justified only under immediate self-defense or with a U.N. Security Council resolution. European legal experts have piled on in recent weeks, calling the killings extrajudicial. Well, if you're taking a beating from European legal experts, and the UN, you know you're doing something right. Speaking to reporters before departing Canada,

Rubio brushed all that aside. Instead, he defended targeting what he called, quote, narco-terrorists, stressing that the drugs shipped through Venezuela don't stop at American shores. They end up in Europe as well, which, in his view, means the U.S. should be thanked, not second-guessed, for targeting and terminating traffickers. Rubio said, quote, the bottom line here is that the President is going to defend the national interests and national security of the U.S., which is under threat by these terrorist organizations. When asked directly about Collis' comments, Rubio didn't budge. He told reporters, quote, I don't think the European Union gets to decide what international law is.

And that's a statement that neatly captures the Trump administration's posture against global mindsets. Canada and the United Kingdom, as we previously discussed, have voiced criticism. Canada's foreign minister at the meeting said that while Ottawa continues to work with Washington on broader counter-narcotics missions, it has, quote, no involvement in ongoing U.S. strike operations. And what asked about a CNN report earlier this week claiming Britain suspended intelligence sharing over concerns about the U.S. strikes, Rubio dismissed it as, quote, a false story, insisting nothing has changed in the U.S.-UK. intelligence partnership. Rubio eventually pivoted to Ukraine with reporters warning.

that Russia continues to demand control of the rest of Dhenetsk, a condition he said, quote, obviously the Ukrainians aren't going to agree to. Despite President Trump's push for an immediate ceasefire with the Ukrainian and Russian forces which would freeze current battlefield positions, Washington concluded Moscow isn't serious about negotiations, and the prospects of a new summit between Trump and President Putin remained shelved for now. The G7's final statement reflected that attention. The ministers collectively advanced new sanctions on Russia's energy sector, while Canada rolled out additional penalties targeting Moscow's drone program, liquefied natural gas entities, and shadow fleet vessels. So as Washington doubles down on its Caribbean strike campaign,

allies continue to express discomfort. But the Secretary of Stey Rubio's message on his way out of Canada was unmistakable. America doesn't need a permission slip, he said, from the international community to defend itself. And that, my friends, is the PDB afternoon bulletin for Thursday the 13th of November. Now, if you have any questions or comments, please reach out to me at BDB at thefirstTV.com. And to listen to the show ad-free, become a premium member of the president's daily brief by visiting pdbpremium.com. It's that simple. I'm Mike Baker, and I'll be back tomorrow. Until then, stay informed. Stay safe. Stay cool. Hey, Mike Baker here. Well, you may have noticed it's now November. And of course, that means Thanksgiving is right

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