The President's Daily Brief - PDB Afternoon Bulletin | September 9th, 2024: Russian Drones Breach NATO Airspace & Iran Restocks Moscow's Ballistic Missiles

Episode Date: September 9, 2024

In this episode of The PDB Afternoon Bulletin:    Tensions are escalating in eastern Europe, as two members of NATO report that Russia violated their countries' airspace over the weekend with military drones purportedly meant for Ukraine. Reports have emerged that Putin’s friends in Iran have shipped hundreds of short-range ballistic missiles to Russia to support Moscow’s war on Ukraine. We’ll discuss the reaction out of Kyiv, and what this development means for the future of the conflict. 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 PDB Afternoon Bulletin. Email: [e-mail].  Blackout Coffee: https://www.blackoutcoffee.com/PDB Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Start your day off with a hot delicious cup or two or three or however many cups you want of Blackout Coffee, family-owned, premium coffee, fresh-roasted, and get this shipped out within 48 hours of roasting. Go to blackout coffee.com, promo code PDB for 20% off your first-time purchase. It's Monday, 9 September. Welcome to the PDB afternoon bulletin. I'm Mike Baker, your eyes and ears on the world stage. Let's get briefed. First, tensions are essential.

escalating in Eastern Europe as two members of NATO report that Russia violated their country's airspace over the weekend with military drones purportedly meant for Ukraine. Also, reports have emerged that Putin's friends in Iran have shipped hundreds of short-range ballistic missiles to Russia to support Moscow's war on Ukraine, after all, what are friends for. We'll discuss the reaction out of Kiev and what this development means for the future of the conflict. But first, our afternoon spotlight. I want to begin with our coverage of the war in Ukraine as tensions are running high along NATO's eastern flank following a massive Russian aerial attack that spilled into two neighboring countries. Romania, a member of the NATO alliance, reported an incursion into their airspace

by a Russian military drone on Sunday, which forced Romania to deploy F-16 fighter jets to monitor the situation. It appears the Iranian-made Shahad drone crashed somewhere along the Romanian Ukrainian border, and while there are no reports of casualties or damage, authorities are investigating potential impact zones, according to a report from the Associated Press. Romania's foreign ministry condemned the use of, quote, criminal Russian aerial vehicles in their sovereign airspace and demanded Russia stop its, quote, reckless escalation. Officials added that they had opened consultations with NATO leadership over the incident. Later on Sunday, NATO member Latvia confirmed that a Russian drone that appeared to come from Putin-ali Belarus had strayed into

their aerospace on Saturday and crashed outside a city in their eastern territory. Officials in Latvia were quick to stress that there were no casualties and that the incident appeared to be accidental. Still, Latvia's president warned, quote, the number of such incidents is increasing on NATO's eastern flank and we must solve them together, end quote. Now NATO's outgoing Deputy Secretary General condemned Russia's violation of Romanian and Latvian airspace on Sunday in a statement on X, saying, quote, while we have no information indicating an intentional attack by Russia against allies, these acts are irresponsible and potentially dangerous, end quote. Now, this is really nothing new for Romania, since Russia's invasion of Ukraine in 2022,

they've regularly reported recovering drone fragments inside their territory, the last incident occurring in July. The violation of Latvia's airspace, however, is a rare event. In a statement, Latvia's defense ministry emphasized that, quote, Latvian airspace is part of NATO airspace. Their minister of defense added, this situation is a confirmation that we need to continue the work we've started to strengthen Latvia's eastern border, including the development of air defense capabilities and electronic warfare capabilities. The airspace violations occurred as Russia unleashed a massive aerial bombardment on 11 different regions of Ukraine over the weekend. The attack involved 67 long-range had drones, though officials in Kiev said 58 were successfully shot down. Coming up after the break, Putin's friends in Iran

have reportedly shipped hundreds of short-range ballistic missiles to Russia to support Moscow's war on Ukraine. I'll be right back. USAA knows dynamic duos can save the day, like superheroes and sidekicks or auto and home insurance. With USAA, you can bundle your auto and home and save up to 10%. Tap the banner to learn more and get a quote at usaa.com slash bundle. Restrictions apply. Welcome back to the afternoon bulletin. I want to turn your attention to Iran, which has reportedly sent over 200 ballistic missiles to Russia,

marking a significant escalation in Tehran's support for Moscow's ongoing invasion of Ukraine. Kiev officials have expressed grave concerns describing the move as a, quote, serious escalation that threatens civilians and Ukraine's infrastructure. According to senior Ukrainian officials, familiar with the matter, a shipment of over 200 Iranian short-range ballistic missiles arrived at a Russian port on the Caspian Sea earlier this week. These surface-to-surface missiles, which have a range of up to 75 miles, are capable of hitting key infrastructure and population centers in northern Ukraine, including the cities of Kharkiv and Sumi. The missiles are expected to be used along the eastern front, where Russia has concentrated

its military efforts, particularly in the strategic city of Pokrovsk. The deepening military cooperation between Iran and Russia has been evident since the early stages of the war in Ukraine. Iran has, of course, previously provided Russia with Shahad drones, which have been used in hundreds of strikes against Ukraine's energy infrastructure, leaving large parts of the country without electricity. Despite denying any direct involvement in the conflict, while there's a surprise, Iran's increasing support from Moscow has drawn international attention and pressure. The G7 nations have threatened sanctions if Tehran continues supplying Russia with ballistic missiles. Exactly how much support to Russia does Iran have to provide before the G7 actually takes action rather than threatens action?

This reported missile delivery allows Russia to preserve its more advanced hypersonic Kienzel missiles for long-range strikes deep inside Ukraine. The Kinsal has been difficult for Ukraine to intercept, with only the U.S. supplied Patriot air defense systems capable of countering them. By utilizing Iranian missiles for closer-range targets, of course, Russia can conserve its Kinsal missiles for high-priority attacks. Now, potentially, that will increase the pressure on Ukrainian forces and infrastructure. beyond the front lines. Ukraine's foreign ministry has strongly condemned the missile delivery,

of course, stating, quote, we call on the international community to increase pressure on Tehran in Moscow to protect international peace and security. Western nations have not yet confirmed the missile transfer, but U.S. officials have expressed deep concern over the report, so that's good. Deep concern is always the first thing you have to do, and then you maybe write a harsh statement, and then you condemn the actions. At some point down the road, maybe you get to, actual action. Sean Sabat, a spokesperson for the National Security Council, emphasized that the U.S. and its allies are, quote, prepared to deliver significant consequences if their missile transfer is confirmed. Sharpen those pencils, that memo is on its way. CIA director Bill Burns,

speaking at Neventon London, echoed these concerns, noting that the growing partnership between Iran and Russia, quote, threatens European security and demonstrates the extent of Iran's destabilizing influence beyond the Middle East. In response to the escalation, Ukrainian President Zelensky renewed his calls for Ukraine's Western partners to provide long-range missile systems to strike Russian military targets inside of Russian territory. Zelensky argues that such systems are crucial in order to increase pressure on Moscow and eventually to end the war, which is now, of course, stretching into its 31st month. Think about that. And that, my friends, is the PDB, afternoon, bulletin for Monday 9 September.

Now, if you have any questions or comments, please reach out to me at PDB at thefirsttv.com, the entire PDB team, including our crack team of interns, love getting your responses, your emails, your questions, your comments, so send them along. Now, as you may have heard over the wireless, to listen to the show ad-free, well, become a premium member of the president's daily brief by visiting pdbpremium.com. I'm Mike Baker. Now, I'll be back tomorrow. Until then, stay informed.

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