PDB Afternoon Bulletin | June 26th, 2026: Trump Slams Iran For Breaking Ceasefire Deal & Russia Declares Emergency In Crimea

**Mike Baker** (0:00)
Choice Hotels gets you more of what you value. Here's a little tune to help you remember.
It's Friday, the 26th of June. Welcome to the PDB Afternoon Bulletin. I'm Mike Baker, your eyes and ears on the world stage. All right, let's get briefed. First up, the peace process between the US and Iran continues to look less like a peace process and more like something that doesn't resemble a peace process. How's that for eloquence? An Iranian drone strike on a commercial ship in the Strait of Hormuz has raised tensions further, prompting a sharp response from President Trump. Later in the show, Ukraine unleashes one of its biggest drone attacks of the war, forcing Russian authorities to declare a state of emergency in Crimea. We'll have the details. But first, today's afternoon spotlight. Just days after the US claimed to be moving toward a broader peace agreement with Iran, the fragile ceasefire is facing yet another test. President Trump accused Iran on Friday of violating the ceasefire by launching attack drones at ships moving through the Strait of Hormuz. Yeah, that would do it, including one drone that struck a commercial cargo vessel off the coast of Oman on Thursday. According to the White House, Iran fired at least four one-way attack drones at ships transiting the waterway. One of those drones hit the upper deck of a large cargo ship. Three others were reportedly shot down. The vessel was damaged, but no casualties were reported. Trump called the incident a, quote, foolish violation, a foolish violation of our ceasefire agreement. Well, no offense, but that sounds like what you'd say to a toddler that just drew on the walls with a Sharpie. This is the Iranian regime deliberately targeting commercial vessels with the potential to injure or kill civilian sailors.
The ship was later identified as the Ever Lovely. It's a Singapore flagged vessel operated by Taiwan's Evergreen Marine. The company said the ship was struck by an unknown object. All right, if that's what we want to call an Iranian drone, while traveling near Oman on a route recommended by maritime authorities. The vessel resumed its trip out of the strait after the attack. Iran was targeting vessels that were attempting to bypass the regime's preferred or in their minds authorized routes, which means the vessels were trying to bypass supposed regime control over who can transit the strait and how.
It's a significant moment as the incident strikes at the heart of the interim agreement or memorandum of understanding between Washington and Tehran. Under that agreement, Iran was supposed to reopen the Strait of Hormuz to commercial shipping, while the two sides entered a 60-day negotiating period aimed at reaching a broader settlement. But instead of restoring confidence in the waterway, Thursday's attack has raised new questions about whether Tehran is trying to institutionalize control over the strait, even while publicly claiming to honor the deal. What? Well, that would imply that the regime isn't negotiating a good faith. I know. That's a surprising thought. While Iran has not publicly claimed responsibility for the strike, if it walks like an Iranian drone and looks like an Iranian drone, it's probably an Iranian drone. You don't have to be clue so to figure that out. Iranian officials have made clear that they expect ships moving through Hormuz to coordinate with Tehran and use routes approved by Iran's newly created Persian Gulf Strait Authority. Well, that sounds official, doesn't it? After the attack, that authority, the PGSA, warned that vessels traveling through unauthorized routes would do so at their own risk. I don't think they know what's in that memorandum of understanding. In other words, Iran appears to be sending a message. The strait may be open. Well, it's not really, is it? But only on our terms. Of course, that's not how the US and its Gulf allies see the interim agreement. Secretary of State Marco Rubio, wrapping up a tour of the Gulf this week, said Thursday that if Iran threatened or blocked ships in the strait, quote, we're going to have a problem, end quote. Well, it looks like then you do have a problem. Rubio and the Gulf Cooperation Council also issued a joint statement calling for free, unconditional and unrestricted navigation through the strait without tolls or attempts by Iran to assert control.
Iran responded angrily. Oh, they got their backup, accusing Washington and Gulf states of issuing what it called an interventionist and provocative statement. Not as provocative as launching attack drones and cargo vessels. Iranian officials argued that the strait should be governed by Iran and Oman and warned that safe passage can't be guaranteed under arrangements that ignore Iran's role as a coastal state. And that dispute is now, of course, having immediate consequences.