November 13th, 2024: Internet Cable Sabotage, Trump’s Influence in the Gulf, & Haitian Gangs Fire at Airliners
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It's Wednesday, 13 November. Welcome to the President's Daily Brief. I'm Mike Baker, your eyes and ears on the world stage. All right, let's get briefed.

We'll kick off the show with a stark warning from Russia, as an ally of Vladimir Putin, you remember him, is accusing the US and UK of plotting to sabotage vital undersea internet cables and disrupt the maritime energy trade. But, you have to ask yourself, are these allegations just a cover for Russia's own plans? That's a good question to ask yourself. Basically,

accuse others of what you're intending to do. Later in the show, we'll move to the Middle East, where Saudi Arabia and the UAE are signaling a commitment to de-escalation with Iran, but with an eye of caution as they remain wary of President-elect Trump's influence in the region.

Plus, an update from the sad situation in Haiti, where the interim prime minister has been ousted and gang violence continues to escalate, forcing authorities to halt all flights in and out of the capital. And in today's back of the brief, President Trump continues to fill out his administration, announcing that the ambassadorship to Israel will go to former Arkansas Governor Mike Huckabee. But first, today's PDB Spotlight.

Allies of Russian President Vladimir Putin are back to one of their favorite pastimes. It's like a hobby, stirring the pot with the West. Aides to Putin are claiming that the U.S. and the U.K. are intending to engage in a major act of sabotage.

Nikolai Petrushev, a close aide to Putin who served as a key advocate of Russia's invasion of Ukraine, alleged in an interview on Monday that American and British intelligence agencies are planning to sabotage underwater Internet cables, a critical piece, of course, of global communication infrastructure that provide Internet connectivity for every corner of the world. That's according to an exclusive report from Newsweek.

Petrushev is no stranger, frankly, to pushing Russian conspiracy theories designed to sow discord between America and European allies, particularly at a time when the future of the Ukraine conflict appears somewhat uncertain. He has, for example, long accused NATO and the NATO alliance without evidence of orchestrating the bombing of the Nord Stream pipeline in the early days of the war.

While that incident still remains under investigation by Germany, Petrushev used it as an example of the capabilities of NATO countries' special forces units. He theorized that the West will soon employ these operatives to target other critical infrastructure, such as the marine fiber optic cables, bizarrely claiming that the West seeks to sow chaos in the global energy market and destabilize maritime transportation.

When asked for comment, a spokesman for the British Foreign Office dismissed the accusations, saying, "We're not going to provide a running commentary on Russia's conspiracy theories." Of course, he said it with a posh British accent, so it sounded even better.

By all accounts, this appears to be a situation of accusing your enemy of what you are doing or intend to do. A popular Telegram channel in Crimea remarked that Petrushev's claims, quote, sound like a cover for their own intentions.

Right off the bat, we can point to Russia's financial and military support of Iran and its proxies, such as the Houthi militants in Yemen, who have themselves spent the past year upending maritime trade through their missile and drone attacks in the Red Sea.

Regarding the world's critical communications infrastructure, CNN ominously reported in September, citing U.S. defense officials, that Russia was assembling a "sabotage unit" consisting of submarines and drones to target underwater Internet cables under the direct orders of the Russian Defense Ministry's Main Directorate for Deep Sea Research.

Those claims went beyond empty rhetoric, as the U.S. has been tracking increased Russian military activity around key undersea cables for months. I want to stress again that these cables serve as the backbone of Internet and telecommunications traffic around the world. And, of course, any sabotage would have a massive impact, disrupting everything from financial and energy markets to the basic operations of governments and their militaries. It might also screw up TikTok.

Back in September, an anonymous U.S. defense official told CNN, "...we're concerned about heightened Russian naval activity worldwide and that Russia's decision calculus for damaging U.S. and allied undersea critical infrastructure may be changing." Put another way, facing a protracted war in Ukraine, Russia's willingness to engage in ever more extreme acts of belligerence has significantly increased.

Just last week, media outlets in Norway reported the presence of a Russian intelligence gathering ship in international waters near critical seabed infrastructure, including internet and telecommunications cables, as well as oil and gas pipelines.

As we've been discussing in recent days, we'll have to wait and see what kind of impact the Donald Trump victory in last week's presidential election will have on relations with Russia. But for now, the Putin regime appears intent on maintaining their adversarial posture. All right, coming up.

Arab nations seek to ease tensions with Iran, but are reportedly cautious over Trump's maximum pressure campaign. And in Haiti, escalating gang violence and political turmoil face a shutdown of the capital's international airport. I'll have those stories when we come back.

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Turning to Iran and the Arab Gulf states, we're beginning to get a clearer picture of how the Islamic regime intends to handle the election of Donald Trump to the U.S. presidency, a man that they've been trying to assassinate for several years.

After nearly a week of silence from Tehran's leaders, Iranian President Massoud Poseshkin addressed the situation in remarks on Tuesday, saying the regime cannot afford to ignore the political sea change in America, signaling his intent to rely on regional diplomacy to protect Iranian interests from Trump's promised maximum pressure campaign. That's according to a report from Reuters.

Paseshkin said, quote, whether we like it or not, we will have to deal with the U.S. in the regional and international arenas, so it's better to manage this relation ourselves. The Iranian leader added, quote, we have to treat our friends with generosity and handle our enemies with forbearance. He added, meh, who am I kidding? We're just going to keep sponsoring terrorism. It's kind of our thing, end quote. All right, that last quote could be made up.

Despite the implication that Tehran is willing to engage in direct diplomacy, there's little indication that Trump plans to hold talks with Iranian leaders when he re-enters the Oval Office in January.

As we discussed on last week's PDB, Iran is reportedly a top priority for Trump as he prepares for his second term in office, with sources indicating a return to the maximum pressure campaign against the mullahs that was last seen during his first term. According to sources that spoke with the Wall Street Journal, Trump will begin by drastically increasing sanctions on Iran, particularly those aimed at their oil exports, as part of a broader strategy

to choke off the regime's financial and military support of terrorist proxies throughout the region.

But Trump may face pushback from the Arab Gulf states, namely Saudi Arabia and the UAE, who have signaled their support for de-escalation with Iran. Now, while they hope Trump can bring some semblance of stability back to a region marred by conflict for more than a year, there are concerns that his strong backing of Israeli Prime Minister Netanyahu could lead to a broader conflagration with Iran. That's according to a report from the Financial Times.

Such a scenario would put Saudi Arabia's oil interests at risk, opening them up to attacks by Iranian proxies and prevent them from focusing on economic diversification, which is a top priority for the kingdom. Saudi Arabia's Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman was a major supporter of Trump during his first term, and the pair are said to enjoy a good working relationship.

But, this was at a time when the oil-rich kingdom was at odds with Iran, with diplomatic relations cut off.

Things have changed since that first term. Saudi Arabia and their neighbors have since sought rapprochement with the mullahs, in large part due to growing frustrations with American foreign policy that raised doubts in Riyadh about the U.S. commitment to their security. In March of 2023, China brokered a "cold peace" between the two regional powers, re-establishing diplomatic relations and officially ending their seven-year rift.

In a sign of their commitment to that cold peace, Crown Prince bin Salman hosted senior Iranian officials at an Arab-Muslim conference on Monday, during which he accused Israel of committing genocide in Gaza and condemned their retaliatory strikes against Iran. Furthermore, he called on the international community to end all hostile acts aimed at Iranian territory. Well, so there's that. A day prior, the chief of staff of the Saudi armed forces

met his Iranian counterpart in Tehran to discuss defense cooperation.

It's a significant swing in Saudi Arabia's posture from Trump's first term and something that Trump will likely have to face head-on if he wants to successfully isolate Iran on the global stage. Still, given Trump's strong relationship with bin Salman, there is some hope that the president-elect will seek to end the fighting in Gaza and Lebanon and pursue a comprehensive peace deal for the region. An unnamed Arab diplomat told the Financial Times, quote,

The sense we get is that President Trump wants a deal to end the war in Gaza. Will it be what everyone wants? Maybe not, but it would end the war, end quote. Okay, turning to Haiti, where the spiraling political crisis intensified Sunday as the Transitional Presidential Council, it's a body meant to restore democratic order, fired Interim President Minister Gary Connier, replacing him with businessman Alex Didier Fils-Aimé,

Haiti has long struggled to rebuild democratic processes with governance eroded by relentless violence and corruption. The Transitional Council, a nine-member body created in April, was intended to steer the Caribbean nation toward an election by appointing a new prime minister and cabinet. However, internal conflicts and corruption allegations hindered the council's credibility.

The Council's decree, slated for publication on Monday, was shared with the Associated Press by a government source, naming Fils-Aimé, a former head of Haitia's Chamber of Commerce and Industry, as Cornier's replacement. Now, Fils-Aimé, who has experience also in a 2015 Senate bid, was among the Council's vetted candidates before Cornier's appointment.

Notably, Kornie A, a seasoned public servant with United Nations experience, served as prime minister for a total of six months, emphasizing the chronic instability within Haiti's leadership.

despite unsuccessful mediation efforts by the Organization of American States, the OAS. Tensions broke last week as council members failed to reconcile with Cornier. The Transitionary Council faced a major credibility crisis worsened in October when three members were accused of soliciting a $750,000 bribe from a government bank director. Yeah, well, that would impact your credibility.

Those same members, undeterred by the accusations, supported Cornier's removal, with only one council member abstaining from signing the decree. Haiti's former Justice Minister Bernard Gousse blasted the council's actions, calling the move to oust Cornier a "illegal overreach" by a body mired in corruption. Gousse's criticism reflects a growing sentiment among Haitians who see their leaders prioritizing personal gains over the country's recovery.

The same day Haiti's transitional council was set to announce a new prime minister, the Federal Aviation Administration grounded U.S. flights to Haiti for 30 days after bullets struck two American planes in Port-au-Prince during escalating gang violence.

A Spirit Airlines plane arriving from Fort Lauderdale, Florida, on Monday was the first plane hit by gunfire, injuring a crew member and forcing diversion to the Dominican Republic, where damage was confirmed. Later, JetBlue discovered a bullet strike during a post-flight inspection at JFK after a return from Haiti, and they've canceled flights through to December, citing, quote, the ongoing civil unrest.

The FAA issued an immediate 30-day restriction on U.S. civil flights under 10,000 feet in Haitian airspace. American Airlines has also suspended Haitian flights temporarily, joining Spirit and JetBlue's safety concerns. Now, with violence escalating and the Transitional Council embroiled in scandal, Haiti's road to stability, unfortunately, looks increasingly bleak. All right, coming up in the back of the brief.

President Trump makes a significant announcement regarding his diplomatic team, appointing former Arkansas Governor Mike Huckabee as ambassador to Israel. I'll have the details when we come back. Time to move? Skip the hassles of selling during the holiday season and sell your home directly to Opendoor. Request an all-cash offer in minutes, close, and get paid in days. You can even pick your close date so you can move after New Year's. Start your move at Opendoor.com or download the Opendoor app.

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In today's Back of the Brief, President-elect Donald Trump's second-term administration takes further shape with the selection of former Arkansas Governor Mike Huckabee as the next U.S. ambassador to Israel. This choice signals Trump's intent to continue strengthening ties with Israel. Since last Tuesday's election, Trump has raced to assemble his team, naming appointees to U.N. ambassador and key advisory roles, as we've

been tracking here on the PDB. Huckabee's selection, one of Trump's staunch allies during the 2024 campaign, emphasizes the importance of the U.S.-Israel alliance in his upcoming term.

In a Tuesday statement, Trump praised Huckabee as a, quote, highly respected figure in the U.S. and Israel. Trump stated, quote, Mike has been a great public servant, governor, and leader in faith for many years, adding, quote, he loves Israel and the people of Israel love him. Mike will work tirelessly to bring peace in the Middle East.

Huckabee has been a vocal supporter of Israel, driven by political and religious convictions. Known for his commitment to Israel's sovereignty, he has stated it is crucial to ensure, quote, the Jewish people feel that they are not alone. Huckabee, who has visited Israel over 100 times, has led numerous group tours, cementing his reputation as one of Israel's most ardent American supporters.

Huckabee's endorsement of Trump was visible throughout the 2024 election, using his Trinity Broadcasting Network talk show, cleverly called Huckabee, to promote Trump's campaign. The duo also appeared together at an October community roundtable in Pennsylvania during the campaign trail.

David Friedman, Trump's former ambassador to Israel, praised Huckabee's appointment, calling it a symbol of America's, quote, moral and strategic alignment with Israel. Friedman stated, quote, It's a decision that will resonate in both countries, noting Huckabee's knowledge and dedication to the role.

And that, my friends, is the President's Daily Brief for Wednesday, 13 November. If you have any questions or comments, please reach out to me at pdbatthefirsttv.com. And as you may have heard from the chit-chat around the water cooler, to listen to the show ad-free, well, it's simple. Just become a premium member of the President's Daily Brief by visiting pdbpremium.com.

I'm Mike Baker, and I'll be back later today with the PDB Afternoon Bulletin. Until then, stay informed, stay safe, stay cool.