I - On Defense Podcast

For review:

1. US Forces seize 6th sanctioned tanker in Caribbean Sea.

2. Venezuelan opposition leader María Corina Machado said she presented her Nobel Peace Prize medal to President Donald Trump at the White House on Thursday.

3. US President Donald Trump reportedly informed Iran that he won’t be ordering a strike on the country over its deadly crackdown on protesters after the leaders of four Arab countries convinced him to hold of...

For review:

1. Latest on Iran Protests.

- Iranian Officials: More Than 2000 Killed in Protests: Iran Blames US and Israel.

- Appearing to depart from the notion of negotiating with the Iranian government, US President Donald Trump told protesters in Iran on Tuesday that “help is on its way” and urged them to keep protesting and take control of the country’s institutions.

- Israeli and Arab officials have suggested the Trump administrat...

For review:

1. US and Jordan Strike ISIS Targets in Syria.

2. Human Rights Group: More Than 500 Killed in Iran Protests; President Trump Weighing Military Options.

3. Hamas says it has instructed its government agencies to prepare to hand over their powers to the independent committee of Palestinian technocrats that is supposed to administer Gaza under US President Donald Trump’s ceasefire plan.

4. Israel on Sunday carried out major ai...

For review:

1. Iranian Protests Continue for 13th Day; Spread Across Iran's 31 Provinces.

2. During visit to Beirut, Iranian Foreign Minister Araghchi has said his country is seeking to open a new chapter in relations with Lebanon, at a time when Lebanon is continuing with plans to disarm Tehran's most potent proxy- Hezbollah.

3. Iran’s supreme leader signaled Friday that security forces would crack down on protesters after ...

For review:

1. US Seizes Oil Tanker in N. Atlantic Ocean.

2. President Trump's advisers Steve Witkoff and Jared Kushner met Wednesday in Paris with Russian envoy Kirill Dmitriev to discuss the U.S. plan for peace in Ukraine.

3. Somaliland in Talks with Israel About Possible Military Base.

4. US Ready to Start Phase 2 of Gaza Peace Agreement.

5. The Lebanese army announced Thursday that it had completed the first phase of its plan t...

For review:

1. At least seven U.S. service members were injured during Operation Absolute Resolve, according to a Pentagon official and a person familiar with the situation. 

The Cuban government said this week that 32 of its officers died in the raid.

2. France, the United Kingdom and Ukraine signed a “Declaration of Intent” on Tuesday to send their forces to Ukraine in the event of a peace deal with Russia.

3. Israel and Syria on Tue...

For review:

1. Former Venezuelan Vice-President (Delcy Rodriguez) sworn in as official President.

2. President Trump: US Not at War with Venezuela.

3. Britain and France on Sunday said they had carried out joint strikes on the Islamic State group in Syria to prevent the Islamist extremists from resurging.

4. A fifth round of talks between Israel and Syria started on Monday in Paris, the first meetings in nearly two months, after progre...

For review:

1. The United Arab Emirates said on Tuesday it was pulling its remaining forces out of Yemen after Saudi Arabia backed a call for UAE forces to leave within 24 hours.

2. Somaliland FM: No Resettlement of Palestinians or Military Bases. 

Somaliland on Thursday officially denied that it had agreed to accept Gazan refugees or allow Israel to establish military bases on its soil in exchange for Israeli recognition.

3. The Irani...

For Review:

1. Saudi Arabia bombed Yemen’s port city of Mukalla on Tuesday over what it described as a shipment of weapons for a separatist force there, which arrived from the United Arab Emirates. 

2. US Drone Strike on Venezuelan Port.

The drone strike targeted a remote dock on the Venezuelan coast that the US government believed was being used by the Venezuelan gang Tren de Aragua to store drugs and move them onto boats for shippin...

For review:

1. The United States hasn’t given up its pursuit of the massive, rusted oil tanker it chased into international waters near Venezuela last weekend, 

Officials no longer expect the Bella 1 to return to the country to load up with oil as the US military and Coast Guard chase it. The ship is currently empty.

2.  Busy Week: President Trump to Meet with Ukraine President & Israeli PM.

3. Israel on Friday became the first cou...

For review:

1. US Strikes ISIS Militants in Nigeria.

2. Venezuela’s ambassador to the United Nations on Tuesday accused the United States of committing the “greatest extortion known in our history” at an emergency meeting of the U.N. Security Council called over Washington’s seizures of Venezuelan oil tankers.

3. Russia's foreign ministry said on Thursday that the United States was reviving piracy and banditry in the Caribbean Se...

For review:

1. US Continues Military Build-Up in Puerto Rico.

The Wall Street Journal reported on Tuesday that at least 10 CV-22 Osprey tilt-rotor aircraft, which are used to transport special forces, arrived in the Caribbean theater from Cannon Air Force Base in New Mexico.

The Journal also reported that C-17 cargo planes from Fort Stewart and Fort Campbell Army bases arrived in Puerto Rico on Monday.

2. Israel reportedly started ship...

For review:

1. Israel has reportedly warned the Trump administration that Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps may be using an ongoing military exercise focusing on missiles as cover to launch an attack on Israel, amid fears that Jerusalem and Tehran are readying for another confrontation.

2. Finland's President (Alexander Stubb): Russia - Ukraine Peace Closer than Any Point in the War

3. US Coast Guard Pursuing 3d Sanctioned...

For review:

1. US Seizes Second Venezuelan Sanctioned Tanker.

2. US Strikes 70 ISIS Targets in Syria.

The attack was conducted using F-15 Eagle jets, A-10 Thunderbolt ground attack aircraft and AH-64 Apache helicopters, the U.S. officials said. F-16 fighter jets from Jordan and HIMARS rocket artillery also were used.

3. NBC Report: Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu will present plans for a possible fresh attack on Iran to US President ...

For review:

1. President Donald Trump said Thursday that he is leaving the possibility of a war with Venezuela on the table.

2. US Secretary of State: We Need to Clarify (ISF) Mandate Before We Can Expect Countries to Contribute Troops.

3. Report: Turkey to Return S400 System to Russia to Allow F-35 Purchase.

4. European leaders on Dec. 19 approved a $105 billion interest-free loan for Ukraine.

5. Potential US Foreign Military Sales (FM...

For review:

1. President Trump Orders Blockade of Sanctioned Venezuelan Oil Tankers.

2. Speaking at an annual meeting with top military officers, Russian President Putin said Moscow would prefer to achieve its goals and “eliminate the root causes of the conflict” by diplomatic means, but he added that “if the opposing side and its foreign patrons refuse to engage in substantive dialogue, Russia will achieve the liberation of its hist...

For review:

1. US Agrees to Unspecified Security Guarantees for Ukraine; Talks to Continue.

2.  Estonia Begins Installing Concrete Bunkers on Border with Russia. The initial batch represents the first phase of the Estonian 600-bunker network as part of the Baltic Defense Line project- coordinated with Lithuania and Latvia.

3. Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu on Monday met with the US Ambassador to Turkey and Special Envoy to Syria an...

For review:

1. Joint US-Syrian Patrol Ambushed; Two US Soldiers Killed; President Trump Vows Serious Retaliation.

2. WSJ Report: A US special operations team in the Indian Ocean raided a ship headed to Iran from China last month and seized military-related articles.

3.  The Israel Defense Forces on Saturday issued a warning to residents of the southern Lebanon town of Yanouh ahead of planned airstrikes against Hezbollah infrastructure...