| | | | |  | | By Robbie Gramer, Eric Bazail-Eimil and Paul McLeary | |  President-elect Donald Trump plans to stack his administration with officials seen as pro-NATO and hawkish on Russia, but also with NATO skeptics and vocal opponents of sending more military aid to Ukraine, including JD Vance. | Mark Schiefelbein/AP | With help from Veronika Melkozerova, Phelim Kine and Daniel Lipman Subscribe here | Email Robbie | Email Eric FIRST IN NATSEC DAILY — Vice President-elect JD VANCE, a prominent GOP skeptic of U.S. aid for Ukraine, met with a delegation of senior Ukrainian officials and other members of President-elect DONALD TRUMP’s inner circle in Washington on Wednesday, two people familiar with the matter confirmed. The Ukrainian delegation traveled to Washington to meet with Vance as well as Rep. MIKE WALTZ (R-Fla.), Trump’s pick to be his national security adviser, and retired Gen. KEITH KELLOGG, Trump’s pick to be special envoy for Ukraine and Russia. The meeting, according to these people, was meant to be a meet and greet for both sides to get to know each other and start developing personal relationships ahead of Trump taking office in January. The meeting with Waltz and Vance was long and substantive, one of the people said, and the Ukrainian side left satisfied with how things went. The Ukrainian delegation was led by ANDRIY YERMAK, who heads the office of Ukrainian President VOLODYMYR ZELENSKYY. Other Ukrainian officials in attendance were Deputy Defense Minister SERGIY BOYEV, presidential adviser DARIA ZARIVNA, and YULIA SVYRYDENKO, Ukraine’s minister of economy. Yermak also made a quick stop down to Mar-a-Lago on Wednesday where he huddled with incoming White House Chief of Staff SUSIE WILES, according to one of the people familiar with his movements. The Trump transition team did not immediately respond to a request for comment. Meet and greets between foreign delegations and incoming U.S. administrations are nothing unusual, but this one was particularly high-stakes. Trump could usher in a dramatic change to Washington’s Ukraine policy once he takes office, with major implications for its ongoing war against Russian invasion. Biden administration officials have maintained that Russia isn’t serious about peace talks and would use negotiations as a stalling tactic to regroup and rearm. All the while, the administration has maintained a steady flow of arms and aid to Ukraine (though often not as fast as Ukraine would like.) Trump, on the other hand, has vowed to start peace talks between the two countries and end the war quickly. He plans to stack his administration with officials seen as pro-NATO and hawkish on Russia, such as Waltz and Sen. MARCO RUBIO (R-Fla.), his pick for Secretary of State. But also with NATO skeptics and vocal opponents of sending more military aid to Ukraine, including Vance. Kellogg co-authored a strategy paper in April with another pro-Trump national security expert, FRED FLEITZ, that proposed sending more arms to Ukraine but only if it participated in peace talks. In that paper, Kellogg and Fleitz argued that the United States “should offer to put off NATO membership for Ukraine for an extended period in exchange for a comprehensive and verifiable peace deal with security guarantees.” Ukrainian officials say they look forward to working with Trump and had productive early meetings. But behind the scenes, some fear that Trump could negotiate a bad deal with Russian President VLADIMIR PUTIN over their heads in a bid to end the war as soon as possible.
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Lockheed Martin’s mission is to protect the ones who serve in their service to the nation. It’s why we lead the way in developing new defense tech and pushing the capabilities of what’s possible to bring security to an unsecure world. Learn more. | | | | | ISRAEL GENOCIDE ALLEGATIONS: Human rights group Amnesty International joined a growing number of international observers in describing Israel’s conduct of the war in Gaza as a “genocide” against Palestinians. Issuing a report today, Amnesty International argues that Israel’s actions and intentions in the Gaza Strip meet the definition of genocide, including detailed efforts to kill and cause serious harm to Palestinian civilians. They point to public statements from Israeli officials and public bodies, interviews with Palestinians who witnessed or were impacted by Israeli military actions, local authorities in Gaza and healthcare workers, fieldwork and satellite imagery. “Month after month, Israel has treated Palestinians in Gaza as a subhuman group unworthy of human rights and dignity, demonstrating its intent to physically destroy them,” said Amnesty International Secretary General AGNÈS CALLAMARD. “Our damning findings must serve as a wake-up call to the international community: this is genocide. It must stop now.” Amnesty International joins a United Nations special committee in accusing Israel of committing genocide against Palestinians. Not everyone agrees with this assessment. ORDE KITTRIE, a law professor at Arizona State University and senior fellow at the hawkish Foundation for Defense of Democracies think tank, told reporters that genocide determinations under international law are subject to a high standard — genocidal intent must be the only inference that can be reasonably drawn from a country or group’s conduct — and in his opinion, Israel’s conduct does not rise to that level. “Is genocide the only inference that could reasonably be drawn from Israel's fighting in Gaza? The answer is no,” Kittrie said. “Every military, including the U.S., has made mistakes in war, has had individual soldiers lose their tempers and commit war crimes and so forth. But the accusation that Israel is committing genocide is outrageous and entirely unsupported by the facts and law.” The United States government also disagrees with Amnesty International. State Department spokesperson VEDANT PATEL told reporters at a briefing today that “allegations of genocide are unfounded.” Patel, however, noted that their disagreement with the report’s conclusion “does not change or alter the continued concern that we have” over the humanitarian situation in Gaza and the number of civilian casualties. The Israeli government, of course, rejects the allegations. Israeli Foreign Ministry spokesperson OREN MARMORSTEIN wrote on X that the Amnesty International report was “fabricated” and “entirely false and based on lies.” He continued: “Israeli citizens have been subjected to daily attacks from seven different fronts. Israel is defending itself against these attacks acting fully in accordance with international law.” PACIFIC ISLAND PERIL: Peru’s China-funded Chancay mega port opened by China’s leader XI JINPING last month creates a potential security threat for the U.S.’s Pacific island allies, a lawmaker warned. As our own PHELIM KINE writes in, Delegate AUMUA AMATA COLEMAN RADEWAGEN (R-American Samoa) warned at a Heritage Foundation event today that Pacific Island countries — including Palau, Marshall Islands and Micronesia — are now more vulnerable to Beijing’s “unlawful, weaponized political warfare.” She explained that shipping lanes linking Peru and China now traverse the Pacific Island region, widening Beijing’s reach. Radewagen urged Trump to address that threat when he enters office by supporting a new “Pacific Charter for Indo-Pacific Freedom” modeled on the Atlantic Charter of 1941 that enshrined freedom of the seas and collective security as cornerstones of U.S.-U.K. ties. IT’S THURSDAY: Thanks for tuning in to NatSec Daily! This space is reserved for the top U.S. and foreign officials, the lawmakers, the lobbyists, the experts and the people like you who care about how the natsec sausage gets made. Aim your tips and comments at rgramer@politico.com and ebazail@politico.com, and follow Robbie and Eric on X @RobbieGramer and @ebazaileimil. While you’re at it, follow the rest of POLITICO’s global security team: @dave_brown24, @HeidiVogt, @RosiePerper, @nahaltoosi, @PhelimKine, @connorobrienNH, @paulmcleary, @reporterjoe, @JackDetsch, @samuelskove, @magmill95, and @johnnysaks130
| | | |   | | | | | HEGSETH HEADACHES CONTINUE: Former Fox News contributor PETE HEGSETH’s efforts to convince some wary senators on Capitol Hill to confirm his nomination still haven’t succeeded. Sen. JONI ERNST (R-Iowa), a critical vote on Hegseth’s nomination, said in a Fox News interview today that she hasn’t made up her mind on whether to support Hegseth or not. “A number of our senators, they want to make sure that any allegations have been cleared and that's why we have to have a very thorough vetting process,” Ernst said. “The vetting will continue, I am certain, through the next month or so until we approach that hearing date.” Ernst’s not the only Republican keeping their options open as the process plays out. Sen. THOM TILLIS of North Carolina, who is up for re-election in 2026, told far-right outlet Breitbart he’d vote for Hegseth if the nomination is recommended favorably by the Senate Armed Services Committee. That’s not a no, but it’s not the yes that Trump and his allies were likely hoping for. Read: In the case of Trump loyalist RIC GRENELL, loyalty did not trump all by our own NATALIE ALLISON and MERIDITH McGRAW
| | KEEP THE DATA: Brussels issued a stark warning to TikTok: keep all data on the Romanian election. As our own PIETER HAECK reports, the European Commission ordered that the video-sharing app "preserve internal documents and information" on the workings of its recommender system and how it handles manipulation risks. TikTok also has to store data on breaches of its ban on political advertising. The order doesn’t explicitly state it’s related to Romania — it covers all national elections and runs until March. But it comes as European allies are alleging that Russia may have played a role in boosting far-right, pro-Putin candidate CĂLIN GEORGESCU, who surged to victory last month in the first round of voting in Romania’s presidential election. They have also scrutinized the role TikTok and other social media apps played in boosting disinformation. Loyal NatSec Daily readers will remember that NATO officials and U.S. government officials are concerned that a Georgescu win could derail Romanian participation in the alliance and stymie key alliance efforts to support Ukraine.
| | CHINA’S DEFENSE CONTRACTOR SANCTIONS: China is upset about an upcoming arms sale to Taiwan and is taking it out on the companies providing weapons to Taipei. China unveiled new sanctions against defense tech executives of firms participating in a recently announced weapons sale to Taipei. The sanctions would freeze any assets they have in China and prevent them from entering mainland China, Hong Kong and Macau. Among the sanctioned are Raytheon’s BARBARA BORGONOVI, BAE Systems’ CHARLES WOODBURN, United Technologies Systems Operations’ RICHARD CRAWFORD, Data Link Solutions’ BETH ADLER, and BLAKE RESNICK of BRINC Unmanned Aerial Vehicles. Beijing has blasted the weapons sale as “a serious violation of the one-China principle and the three joint communiqués of the United States and China, a serious interference in China's internal affairs, and a serious damage to China's sovereignty and territorial integrity.”
| | | LAWMAKERS SLAM INTEL COMMUNITY: A top Republican lawmaker lashed out at the U.S. intelligence community for stonewalling a Congressional investigation into health incidents affecting U.S. government personnel abroad. Rep. RICK CRAWFORD (R-Ark.), chair of the House Permanent Select Committee on Intelligence’s CIA subcommittee, issued a new interim unclassified report on Thursday outlining his findings — and the limits of his findings — into an investigation on the so-called Havana Syndrome that allegedly caused severe illnesses in U.S. intelligence officials and diplomats posted abroad. The Republican majority shared the interim report with the committee’s Democratic minority, but the Democrats did not jointly issue the report with their colleagues across the aisle. Crawford concludes that it is “increasingly likely a foreign adversary is responsible for some portion of” the anomalous health incidents, or AHIs. This is an assertion that contradicts the publicized findings from the U.S. intelligence community, or IC. Crawford declined to name the foreign adversary but said it would be included in a classified version of his interim report on the matter. “AHIs represent a genuine and compelling danger to the IC workforce. This danger has not been fully realized by IC leadership,” the report concludes. In an interview with reporters, Crawford lambasted the intelligence community for what he described as stonewalling and slow-walking cooperation with his investigation at every turn. He said in one instance, he received a document from a U.S. intelligence agency that “was entirely redacted … one giant black page.” “Then after a subpoena, they were forced to lift the redaction. And it turns out that there was no need for redaction in the first place because it was unclassified information,” he said. “I'm not asking to see raw intelligence,” he added. “But it is entirely unacceptable for the House Permanent Select Committee on Intelligence to make a request for documents and then be told we're not cleared to see that document. We oversee those agencies,” he said.
| | SYRIA BLAME GAME: Syria and its allies aren’t taking any responsibility for military setbacks against the country’s opposition forces. Instead, a Newsguard analysis, shared with NatSec Daily, has found that they’re pointing the finger at Israel, Ukraine and the United States. As Syria’s military is losing ground to the country’s opposition forces, Russian state media has accused Ukrainian security forces of providing HTS, the main group leading the offensive against Syrian President BASHAR AL-ASSAD, with drones and military training. Meanwhile, Iranian state media and Chinese state media have insinuated the Israelis and the United States are involved in supporting HTS. Iran’s proxies are also joining the action. Hezbollah-affiliated commander SHIBL AL-ZAYDI, called HTS a “Zionist” entity operating “with American support” and claimed the rebel offensive was "fabricated by Western intelligence agencies.” There’s no evidence that the U.S. or Israel is supporting HTS. U.S. officials have voiced their unease about HTS’ ties to Al-Qaeda and the U.S. has primarily backed the Kurds in recent conflicts in Syria.
| | | | — MARIA MCFARLAND SÁNCHEZ-MORENO, an executive at the human rights group Human Rights Watch, is leaving the organization to become chief executive of anti-corruption advocacy group RepresentUs. — STEVE NORDLUND, vice president and general manager of Air Dominance, is retiring, Breaking Defense reported. DAN GILLIAN, the vice president of Mobility, Surveillance & Bombers, will replace Nordlund. JAMIE BURGESS, Boeing Defense’s vice president for program management, will replace Gillian.
| | — CHARLES LISTER, Foreign Policy: Why Assad’s regime is collapsing so quickly — JOBY WARRICK and SERHIY MORGUNOV, The Washington Post: Far from the front lines, a spy war rages over Russian weapons — ALEXIS OKEOWO, The New York Times: Ethiopia’s agony: ‘I have never seen this kind of cruelty in my life’
| | — Center for Strategic and International Studies, 9 a.m.: Pacific Islands media: Navigating a sea of challenges — Wilson Center's Global Europe Program, 10 a.m.: From Brussels to Washington: Transatlantic relations under the new European Commission — Quincy Institute for Responsible Statecraft, 10 a.m.: Biden's Africa trip: What are the payoffs? — Brookings Institution and the Center for Strategic and International Studies, 11:30 a.m.: "Where Are US-China Relations Headed?" with Rep. JIM HIMES (D-Conn.) — Atlantic Council, 1:30 p.m.: Commanding the Alliance: Perspectives from SACEURs (Supreme Allied Commander Europe) — Mitchell Institute for Aerospace Studies, 3:30 p.m.: "Airpower and the Indo-Pacific" with Gen. KEVIN SCHNEIDER Thanks to our editor, Rosie Perper, who would make a terrible Defense secretary. Thanks to our producer, Gregory Svirnovskiy, who should be given the keys to the Pentagon. CORRECTION: Due to incorrect information provided to NatSec Daily, Wednesday's newsletter misstated the timing of Jeff Dressler's service on the Afghan War Commission.
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