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The President's Daily Brief
August 12th, 2025: Putin Reveals List Of Demands For Peace In Ukraine & Trump’s Caucasus Deal
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- [00:00]
Mike Baker
Looking to diversify and protect your hard earned assets. Well, schedule a free consultation call with the Birch Gold Group. They're the precious metals specialists. Just text PDB to the number 989898 and you'll receive a free no obligation information kit. And you'll learn how to convert an existing IRA or a 401k into a gold IRA. Again, it's simple. Just text PDB to the number 989898. Foreign It's Tuesday 12th August. Welcome to the President's Daily Brief. I'm Mike Baker, your eyes and ears on the world stage and, well, still on the road and coming to you from an undisclosed hotel room in some location somewhere. I hope that's vague enough. All right, let's get briefed. First up, President Vladimir Putin has revealed his list of demands for ending the war in Ukraine. That would be the war he started, including Kiev, making major territorial concessions and global recognition of Russia's claims. And a pony. He. He wants a pony. We'll have those details later in the show. Israel's foreign ministry is defending its military after the killing of an Al Jazeera correspondent in Gaza. Now, the targeted attack drew sharp condemnation from press advocates and foreign government, plus a diplomatic win for President Trump as Armenia and Azerbaijan sign a U. S brokered peace deal to end nearly four decades of conflict. And in today's back of the brief, a Chinese warship slams into its own Coast Guard vessel while chasing a Philippine boat in the South China Sea in what Manila is calling a risky maneuver gone wrong. Whoops. Or as they say in Chinese, AI ya. But first, today's pdb. The world is standing by for Friday's face to face summit between President Trump and Russian leader Vladimir Putin in Alaska. Now the meeting will possibly define the trajectory of any future peace talks between Russia and Ukraine. American officials are still rushing to finalize the details while European leaders anxiously look on expressing deep skepticism about Putin's motives. They've got significant concerns over Ukrainian President Zelenskyy's exclusion from the sit down and fear Washington and Moscow could attempt to broker peace terms without direct input from Kyiv. Which of course would mean the invaded country would still need to agree to any suggested deal. As a reminder, last week President Trump said he wanted to follow up his one on one with Putin with a trilateral summit between himself, Putin and Zelensk. But the Kremlin pushed back against the idea. While White House officials have left the door open for extending Zelenskyy an invitation as of Monday, it doesn't appear that Putin has changed his position. Needless to say, significant uncertainty surrounds the summit and whether Trump's long held faith in his ability to leverage direct diplomacy can yield a breakthrough. But Putin has presented the Trump administration with a list of demands ahead of the meeting, which may give us a clue as to how serious he is about ending the more and three year old war. Hint he's not serious. According to an exclusive report from the Wall Street Journal, Putin told US Special envoy Steve Witkoff last Wednesday that he would agree to a full ceasefire if Ukraine agrees to major territorial concessions and Russia receives global recognition of its territorial claims. Specifically, Putin wants the Ukrainian military to pull all of its forces out of the eastern Donetsk region, which would effectively grant Moscow control over the entire Donetsk and Luhansk regions of eastern Ukra, as well as, of course, the Crimean Peninsula. Russian forces already occupy most of Donetsk and Luhansk regions, collectively known as the Donbass, but Ukrainian forces still have a foothold in sizable chunks of that territory. While the proposal from Putin regarding the Donbas is familiar, officials said it may signal a slight shift away from his previous demands to permanently freeze the war along the current front lines, which extend well beyond the eastern regions. Officials say this leaves open the possibility of a land swap. Who are these officials? Between Moscow and Kyiv. The only problem is, well, Kyiv doesn't have any Russian land left to swap. The major question that American and European officials are seeking to clarify is whether Russia will also push for control over the southeastern regions of Zaporozhia and Kherson, where their troops control much of the territory. One US Official told the Journal that the Kremlin wants to initially pause the war at the current lines in both Zaporizhzhia and Kherson, followed by negotiations on land swaps with Ukraine. This official, however, said the Putin regime aims to control both regions and that it was unclear what territory Ukraine would receive in return. Hint they wouldn't be offered any territory. On a call with European leaders on Friday, Witkoff reportedly said that the Russian proposal would have two phases. He's very keen to carve up Ukraine, isn't he? The first would involve an immediate ceasefire and Ukraine's full withdrawal from Donetsk, which of course is Ukrainian land. The second would see Putin and Trump agree on a final peace plan, including the specifics of a land swap, which would then be presented to Zelensky. Now, just for a moment, imagine that the US was invaded and the invading army had taken Texas, and then the European Union decides to negotiate a peace deal with the invaders and says well, the US Is going to have to give up Texas. Look, it's not a perfect analogy, I grant you that, but maybe you get my point. Following these reports, Zelensky rejected the idea of ceding any land to Russia over the weekend. He told reporters, quote, any decisions made without Ukraine are at the same time decisions against peace. They will bring nothing. These are dead decisions. They'll never work, end quote. On Monday. Well, President Trump chided Zelensky over the remarks, saying he was, quote, bothered by his dismissal of the idea of land swaps ahead of the summit. Again, what land do we imagine the Ukraine's going to swap? Trump argued, argued any land swaps will be made for, quote, the good of Ukraine, saying it would result in Ukraine getting some of its territory back from the Russians. Regarding Putin, Trump said Monday that Friday's talks will be a, quote, feel out meeting. That sounds sketchy to determine if the Kremlin is serious about peace. The President said he would know within two minutes of his sit down whether progress with Putin is possible. So frankly, the meeting should only last about two minutes. But Trump said he hopes the meeting will be productive and lead to a trilateral summit with Zelenskyy in the very near future. Meanwhile, European leaders are rallying around Zelenskyy, arguing against any proposal that forces Kyiv to cede territory to Moscow. German Chancellor Friedrich Mertz has organized an emergency virtual summit with Zelenskyy and other European leaders for Wednesday, which Trump and Vice President J.D. vance will reportedly join. European leaders are expected to push Trump to up the financial pressure on Russia with new sanctions. They'll also want to see the US Give Ukraine firm security guarantees to ward off future Russian aggression and assure any potential territorial exchanges are balanced and made with input from Kyiv. Now, if Putin comes to the negotiating table in good faith, well, there could be room for a deal, of course. But you might want to ask yourself, when has Putin ever done anything in good faith? Look, diplomacy is always worth pursuing. There's no doubt about that. But at a certain point, you have to acknowledge the nature of your opponent. And from Keev's perspective, well, the words of Winston Churchill still ring true. You can't negotiate with the tiger when your head is in its mouth. Putin is not interested in peace. Putin is interested in winning. And the only way to get Putin to negotiate in good faith is if he's feeling pain and is concerned about losing the support of his population and his grip on power. And frankly, the only way to do that is to strangle his economy. Alright, coming up next, Israel defends its killing of an Al Jazeera correspondent in Gaza. And President Trump scores a diplomatic win as Armenia and Azerbaijan sign a US Brokered peace deal. I'll be right back. Hey, Mike Baker here. Let me ask you a quick question about your personal finances. 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- [10:04]
Piers Morgan
I'm Piers Morgan, the host of the Piers Morgan Uncensored podcast. We do big interviews and we do big debates about whatever's getting people talking. We make news, we make noise, and we make a little bit of trouble, too. Come and see what all the fuss is about. You can listen to Piers Morgan Uncensored on Apple podcasts, Spotify, Amazon Music, or wherever you get your podcasts.
- [10:31]
Mike Baker
Welcome back to the pdb. An airstrike on Gaza late Sunday killed Al Jazeera correspondent Anas al Sharif, hailed by colleagues as a veteran reporter but accused by Israel of leading a Hamas terror cell. Whichever. The killing ignited condemnation from press freedom advocates and foreign governments. Both the IDF and hospital officials in Gaza City confirmed the death, which the Committee to Protect Journalists, known as C DPJ described its retribution against those documenting the war. According to the Associated Press, the Israeli strike hit a tent used by reporters outside Gaza's Shifa hospital, killing five Al Jazeera staffers, four other journalists, and two people who had been sheltering nearby. Israel's Foreign Ministry defended the strike, insisting that journalists are not the Target, but adding, quote, jihadi terrorists with cameras are not journalists. In a post on X, the ministry declared, we will hunt the jihadists, not protect their cover. Now the IDF says Al Sharif was no reporter at all, but rather the leader of a Hamas cell that facilitated rocket attacks on Israel. Last month. An IDF spokesman accused him of belonging to Hamas's military wing. It's an allegation Israel claims is in line with the terror group's long documented habit of embedding fighters among civilians in schools and hospitals. The airstrike came just hours after Israeli Prime Minister Netanyahu defended his planned offensive into Gaza City and other densely populated areas, telling reporters that he's instructed the military to bring in more foreign journalists to cover the operations. That comment landed against the backdrop of months of Israeli accusations that Al Sharif and other Al Jazeera reporters had ties to terror groups. Charges at the Qatari based outlet has dismissed as part of a Jerusalem based smear campaign campaign. Al Jazeera called Sunday's strike a targeted assassination, linking it to what it described as Israeli incitement that escalated after Al Sharif cried on air over starvation in Gaza. A statement from Al Jazeera said, quote, anas and his colleagues were among the last remaining voices from within Gaza, providing the world with unfiltered on the ground coverage of the devastating realities endured by its people, end quote. Foreign journalists remain barred from Gaza except for rare military escorted visits, leaving Al Jazeera as one of the few outlets still covering the enclave. The network has faced repeated crackdowns in Israel, including a ban and a raid on its west bank offices last year. Several of the outlet's staff have been killed since the war began, including a correspondent in Cameramen last summer and a freelancer in March, all of whom Israel accused of ties to terror groups in the enclave. Al Sharif's killing drew condemnation, of course, from the UN and the cpj, which warned last month that Israel was targeting him. In late July, a UN Special investigator on freedom of expression alleged such killings were part of a deliberate strategy of Israel to suppress the truth, obstruct the documentation of internal crimes, and barring any possibility of future accountability, end quote. The UN Human Rights Office called Sunday strike a grave breach of international humanitarian law, but Jerusalem well maintains that Al Sharif was a Hamas operative. Still, since the war began In October of 2023, at least 190 journalists have reportedly been killed in Gaza, according to CPJ. And that's a toll that Brown University back in April labeled as, quote, the worst ever conflict for reporters. Okay. Turning to the Caucasus, an area that's not often covered by the media. Armenia and Azerbaijan on Monday released the text of the US Brokered peace agreement. Now the agreement pledges to recognize each other's territorial integrity and end nearly four decades of conflict. It's a move hailed as a diplomatic victory for President Trump. The preliminary accord was hammered out in Washington last week when the Azerbaijani president and the Armenian prime minister met at the White House. Trump called the deal historic and a long time coming. The president described it as a breakthrough that would reopen vital transport routes, halt the fighting, and expand US Influence in the south Caucus, a region long dominated by Russian diplomacy. Initialed by the nation's foreign ministers, the agreement commits both sides to drop territorial claims and uphold international law. It also bars third party troop deployments along their shared border in a pointed provision aimed at Russia, which has stationed peacekeepers there for years now. The European Union's monitoring mission, tasked with monitoring ceasefire violations, is now deployed along the frontier. That's a presence that Baku has repeatedly demanded be withdrawn. But the complex deal isn't signed yet. The main sticking point? Well, Azerbaijan insists Armenia must amend its constitution to eliminate language that it says makes implicit claims on Baku's territory. The Azerbaijan president said its neighbor has some homework to do before any final signing. The Armenian prime minister has floated a referendum on constitutional changes, but hasn't set a date, calling the accord a solid foundation that reflects the balanced interests of both nations. The urgency behind the push for peace is underscored by recent history. Less than two years ago, Azerbaijan's 2023 military operation reclaimed the disputed Nagorno Karabakh region, prompting nearly all of its 100,000 ethnic Armenians to flee. Since the late 1980s, the two former Soviet republics have been locked in a cycle of wars and uneasy truces that have resisted resolution for almost 40 years. A centerpiece of the preliminary agreement now grants the US Exclusive developmental rights to a strategic transit corridor through southern Armenia, eventually to Turkey, dubbed the Trump Route for International Peace and Prosperity. And no, I'm not making that up. The corridor is expected to significantly boost regional trade and energy exports. Now, I'd like to point out that control over the route has derailed past negotiations, with Armenia seeking authority over it and Aliyev from Azerbaijan threatening to seize it by force. Both leaders credited Trump's mediation with breaking the deadlock, with the Azerbaijani president declaring, quote, president Trump in six months did a miracle, end quote. Alongside the main peace agreement, Trump announced separate bilateral deals with the two countries to expand energy and technology trade, further sidelining Russian President Putin, after years of failed Kremlin led mediation attempts to the eu. Turkey and even Moscow welcomed the breakthrough, though the Kremlin couldn't resist warning against foreign meddling. If sides had implemented in full, and there is an if there, the accord could reshape the geopolitical map of the South Caucasus and bring an end to one of the post Soviet world's most entrenched conflicts. Okay, coming up next in the back of the brief, a Chinese warship collides with its own Coast Guard vessel while chasing a Philippine boat in the South China Sea. Seriously. In an effort to scare off a Philippine vessel, the Chinese navy instead smashed one of their ships into another one of their ships. Stay with us. Hey, Mike Baker here. Let me take just a moment of your time to talk about protecting your hard earned assets. Now you've probably noticed that out there in the big wide world there's a bit of turmoil in the economy, right? And trade wars, although tariffs back and forth, a US Federal Reserve that seems a bit at odds with the White House, uncertainty over employment numbers, a volatile stock market. Starting to get the picture at times like these. Look, it's important to think about your assets and how to protect them. And one way to do that is through diversification. And I'm here to suggest that you consider diversifying with gold from the Birch Gold Group. They're the precious metals specialists. Look, for decades, gold has been viewed as a safe haven in times of economic stagnation or global uncertainty. And Birch Gold makes it incredibly easy for you to diversify some of your savings into gold. If you've got an IRA or maybe an old 401k, you can convert that into a tax sheltered IRA in physical gold or. Well, like a lot of folks, you can just buy gold to store safely at home. First, you want to get yourself educated and Birchgold can send you a free information kit on gold. Just text PDB to the number 989898. Again, text PDB to the number 9 89898. Consider diversifying a portion of your savings into gold. Text PDB to 989. In today's Back of the brief, we turn to the South China Sea where the communist regime in Beijing just suffered a major naval embarrassment while trying to bully one of their southern neighbors. On Monday, a Chinese warship crest into one of its own Coast Guard vessels while chasing a Philippine vessel in the disputed waters, causing substantial damage to the Chinese warship's forward deck. Officials with the Philippine Coast Guard said their own vessels were distributing aid to fishermen in the South China Sea near the Scarborough Shoal, when the Chinese Navy and Coast Guard swarmed their position. That's according to a report from the BBC. While trying to intimidate the Philippine Coast Guard, officials said a Chinese Coast Guard vessel performed a risky maneuver, causing it to smash into the warship. Yeah, that sounds like a risky maneuver. Chinese officials quickly accused the Philippines of, quote, forcibly intruding into Chinese waters, but conspicuously did not mention the collision. But video released by officials in Manila showed a Chinese Coast Guard ship firing water cannons as it chased the Philippine vessel before making a sudden turn. It can then be heard slamming loudly into the Chinese warship, though it's not clear if the incident resulted in any injuries. Now, Commodore J. Terriella of the Philippine Coast Guard said the crash rendered the Chinese warship unseaworthy, but due to Beijing's silence, its official status remains unclear. But it's just the latest in a string of dangerous encounters between China and the Philippines in the South China Sea. As our listeners know, the waters are at the center of long standing territorial disputes between China, the Philippines, Taiwan and several other countries. Incidents near the Scarborough Shoal, a triangular chain of reefs and rocks, have sharply escalated in recent years, particularly after China seized it in 2012, with each side accusing the other of provocations. Now, Commodore Teriella said Monday that the Philippine Coast Guard has routinely warned the CCP to respect international law. Well, that should have worked when it comes to handling territorial disputes, particularly given China's role in enforcing maritime laws. He added, quote, we've also emphasized that such reckless behavior at sea could ultimately lead to accidents, end quote. And it seems like it did. And that, my friends, is the President's Daily brief for Tuesday 12th August. Now, if you have any questions or comments, please reach out to me at pdb@the first tv.com and to listen to the show ad free, which of course you can do. And you can do that very simply. Just become a premium member of the President's Daily brief by visiting pdbpremium.com See? Told you it was simple. I'm Mike Baker and I'll be back later today with the PDB Afternoon Bulletin. Until then, stay informed, stay safe, stay cool. It.