America Launches A Second Night Of Strikes On Iran & Russian General Killed

**Mike Baker** (0:12)
It's Thursday, the 11th of June. Welcome to The Presidents Daily Brief. I'm Mike Baker. Your eyes and ears on the world stage. And yes, as a matter of fact, I am still on the road. All right, let's get briefed. First up, the US launches a second consecutive night of strikes against Iran. We'll have the latest details and ask the question, when are we officially allowed to say that the ceasefire is over? Later in the show, another senior Russian military official is dead after a car bomb explodes outside Moscow. We'll tell you who he was and why his death raises new questions about security inside Russia. Later in the show, Pakistan launches new airstrikes inside Afghanistan, shattering weeks of relative calm. Honestly, it is just a cavalcade of crappy ceasefires out there in this world of ours. And in today's Back of the Brief, FIFA, you know them, they're the World Cup people. They're facing calls to ban Iran after allegations that soccer clubs were used to spy on citizens inside the Iranian regime. Really? The Iranian regime spying on their own citizens? Well, it does beat killing them by the thousands.
But first, today's PDB Spotlight.
The US launched a second consecutive night of airstrikes against Iran on Wednesday after Iran responded to earlier American strikes by firing missiles and drones at US military facilities across the Middle East. According to US Central Command, American forces began what it described as additional self-defense strikes at approximately 5:15 PM Eastern Time at President Trump's direction. CENTCOM said the operation was launched in response to Iran's quote unwarranted and continued aggression. While military officials have not yet released a complete target list, a senior US official told Axios that the strikes focused on air defense systems, radar installations, and drone command and control facilities located in southern Iran.
Iranian media reported explosions in several locations near the Strait of Hormuz. Other reports indicated that air defenses were activated in parts of Tehran, and that explosions were heard in Isfahan, though it remains unclear whether those locations were directly targeted. The latest operation follows a rapid series of military exchanges that began earlier this week when an Iranian drone brought down an American Apache helicopter near the Strait of Hormuz. After rescuing the helicopter's two crew members, the US responded Tuesday night with what the Pentagon described as a proportional strike package against Iranian military infrastructure.
Now, Iran then retaliated by launching missiles and drones at American positions in Jordan, Kuwait, and Bahrain. US and regional officials say most of those threats were intercepted and no American casualties have been reported.
So, at least for now, the pattern does appear somewhat predictable. Iran strikes, the US responds, Iran answers, the US responds again. Yet despite the escalating military exchanges, both the US and Iran continue to insist they remain open to diplomacy. Ah, of course, here we go with the part where one or the other side says the ceasefire is technically still in effect and the US expresses optimism that a deal could be very close. Apologies for my cynical nature.
But while the latest exchange of missiles, drones, and airstrikes may dominate today's headlines, new reporting suggests the roots of this particular latest crisis run deeper than the last few days of military action.
According to Axios, President Trump had been growing increasingly frustrated with Iran's handling of negotiations long before an Iranian drone brought down the American helicopter near the Strait of Hormuz earlier this week. In fact, the helicopter incident appears to have landed at precisely the wrong moment. Behind the scenes, US negotiators had been waiting nearly two weeks for a response to President Trump's latest proposal for ending the conflict and reopening the Strait to unrestricted commercial traffic. The proposal itself reportedly included a significant American concession. According to Axios, Trump was willing to allow Iran to downblend its stockpile of enriched uranium inside Iran under the supervision of the International Atomic Energy Agency. Previous US proposals had insisted that the material be removed from the country altogether. In exchange, Washington reportedly wanted two things. First, Iran would need to begin reducing its enriched uranium stockpile within 60 days. And second, Tehran would have to agree to stop imposing tolls or restrictions on commercial vessels transiting the strait.
Iranian officials initially told mediators they needed only a few days to provide an answer. Those few days turned into nearly two weeks. Look, we've said it before here on the PDB.
No government, nobody, slow rolls, negotiations better than the Iranian regime. It's their signature move. During that time, US officials repeatedly warned that delays carried risks. Negotiators feared that a military incident or a regional flare up or some other unexpected event could derail the diplomatic process before an agreement was finalized. And that warning came true. Over the last 10 days, tensions throughout the region steadily escalated. Israel launched strikes in Beirut. Iran responded with missile attacks against Israel. Israeli aircraft then carried out strikes inside Iran itself. And then came the Apache helicopter incident. While US officials still have not determined whether Iran intentionally targeted the helicopter, the downing of an American military aircraft dramatically changed the political landscape in Washington. According to Axios, White House officials believed failing to respond would make the US appear weak, ah, well, there you go, and undermine America's leverage at the negotiating table. Yes, that is exactly how the Iranian regime would have interpreted a lack of response. Well done. As a result, Trump authorized what the Pentagon described as a proportional military response, targeting Iranian radar sites, drone control facilities, and air defense systems near the strait. Yet even as missiles and bombs were flying, diplomacy never fully stopped, supposedly. Qatari mediators continued shuttling between the two sides as US and Iranian officials maintained indirect contacts. White House officials publicly insisted that negotiations remained alive. Ah, hopes a marvelous thing. In a sense, at least according to the White House narrative, the military strikes following the helicopter downing were intended to punish Iran, but also intended to send a message. According to Axios, US officials viewed the operation as a way to restore leverage and demonstrate that continued delays could carry consequences. And those consequences are now playing out in yet another round of targeted strikes.