TRUMP: ‘I DON’T LIKE PERMANENT ENEMIES’: President Donald Trump, basking in the glow of an effusively warm welcome in the Saudi capital of Riyadh, laid out a vision of a new age of cooperation in the Middle East — praising countries in the region for a “great transformation” that he said has resulted in the “birth of a modern Middle East,” while criticizing Western “interventionists” who “had no idea how to do it themselves.”
“Before our eyes, a new generation of leaders is transcending the ancient conflicts of tired divisions of the past and forging a future where the Middle East is defined by commerce, not chaos, where it exports technology, not terrorism, and where people of different nations, religions, and creeds are building cities together, not bombing each other out of existence,” Trump said, delivering a major policy address at an investment forum on the first day of his trip.
“It’s crucial for the wider world to note this great transformation has not come from Western intervention or flying people in beautiful planes, giving you lectures on how to live and how to govern your own affairs,” he said. “In the end, the so-called nation-builders wrecked far more nations than they’ve built, and the interventionalists were intervening in complex societies that they did not even understand themselves … Peace, prosperity, and progress ultimately came not from a radical rejection of your heritage but rather from embracing your national traditions and embracing that same heritage that you love so dearly.”
“My greatest hope is to be a peacemaker and to be a unifier. I don’t like war,” Trump said. “I have never believed in having permanent enemies. I am different than a lot of people think. I don’t like permanent enemies … In fact, some of the closest friends of the United States of America are nations we fought wars against in generations past, and now they’re our friends and our allies.”
TRUMP DROPS SANCTIONS ON SYRIA AND PREVIEWS EXPANSION OF ABRAHAM ACCORDS IN SAUDI ARABIA
AN ‘OLIVE BRANCH’ TO IRAN: Trump again professed a desire to resolve the issue of Iran’s nuclear program peacefully, through negotiation, while underscoring his demand that they never acquire nuclear weapons.
“We’ll never allow America and its allies to be threatened with terrorism or nuclear attack. The choice is theirs to make. We really want them to be a successful country, we want them to be a wonderful, safe, great country, but they cannot have a nuclear weapon,” Trump said.
“I want to make a deal with Iran. If I can make a deal with Iran, I’ll be very happy,” Trump said. “But if Iran’s leadership rejects this olive branch and continues to attack their neighbors, then we will have no choice but to inflict massive, maximum pressure, drive Iranian oil exports to zero like I did before.”
“This is an offer that will not last forever. The time is right now for them to choose, right now. We don’t have a lot of time to wait. Things are happening at a very fast pace,” he said. “So they have to make their move right now. One way or the other, make your move.”
The pressure to close a deal with Tehran comes as Iranian media reports say Iranian foreign minister Abbas Araghchi has proposed a novel plan to create a joint nuclear-enrichment venture involving regional Arab countries and American investments. A spokesman for U.S. special envoy Steve Witkoff told the New York Times that the idea was “never floated or discussed” at the latest round of talks in Oman.
SEAN HANNITY SEES ‘DESIRE’ FROM SAUDI ARABIA TO WORK WITH TRUMP
GIVING SYRIA ‘A CHANCE AT GREATNESS’: Perhaps the loudest applause came when Trump announced he would ease sanctions on Syria and begin the process of normalization with the government that replaced dictator Bashir Assad in December.
“I will be ordering the cessation of sanctions against Syria in order to give them a chance at greatness,” as the room broke out in thunderous applause. “The sanctions were brutal and crippling and served as an important, really an important function nevertheless at the time,” Trump said. “We’re taking them all off and … now it’s their time to shine.”
To put a button on the moment, before departing Riyadh, Trump met briefly with the new Syrian President Ahmad al-Sharaa, the onetime insurgent leader who spent years imprisoned by U.S. forces.
Sharaa, who had ties to ISIS and al Qaeda in the past, is technically still designated a terrorist by the State Department, but is anxious to get U.S. aid in rebuilding the country after more than a decade of civil war.
TRUMP’S ‘AMERICA FIRST’ POLICY LEAVES ISRAEL UNEASY
Good Wednesday morning and welcome to Jamie McIntyre’s Daily on Defense, written and compiled by Washington Examiner National Security Senior Writer Jamie McIntyre (@jamiejmcintyre) and edited by Christopher Tremoglie. Email here with tips, suggestions, calendar items, and anything else. Sign up or read current and back issues at DailyonDefense.com. If signing up doesn’t work, shoot us an email and we’ll add you to our list. And be sure to follow me on Threads and/or on X @jamiejmcintyre.
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HAPPENING TODAY: NEXT STOP, DOHA: President Trump has departed Saudi Arabia and will arrive in Doha, Qatar about 1:30 p.m. local time, where he will be honored with a state visit. In addition to meeting with Qatar’s Emir Sheikh Tamim bin Hamad Al-Thani Trump is expected to meet with Indian billionaire Mukesh Ambani, who is Asia’s richest man, according to Reuters.
US HAD PLANNED 8-MONTH WAR AGAINST THE HOUTHIS: Reuters news agency is the second media out to report that the U.S. campaign against Houthi rebels in Yemen was designed to go on for eight months, but was cut short when the Houthi began to seek an off-ramp.
After seven weeks of “unrelenting” U.S. bombings, Houthi leaders began reaching out around the first weekend in May to U.S. allies in the Middle East,” Reuters is reporting, citing two U.S. officials. “We started getting intel that the Houthis had had enough,” one of the officials said.
On Monday, the New York Times reported U.S. Central Commander Gen. Michael Kurilla had proposed “an eight-to-10-month campaign in which Air Force and Navy warplanes would take out Houthi air defense systems” followed by “targeted assassinations modeled on Israel’s recent operation against Hezbollah.”
Citing sources, the New York Times said President Trump began to question the operation’s progress, dubbed “Rough Rider,” by Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth, especially after losing a half-dozen expensive Reaper drones and three F-18 Super Hornet aircraft. With the U.S. strikes “burning through weapons and munitions at a rate of about $1 billion in the first month alone,” Trump was ready to take the Houthis at their word that they would stop shooting at American ships, even if Israel and its ships were still under fire.
At some point, the newspaper reported, “General Kurilla’s eight-to-10-month campaign was given just 30 days to show results.”
“American strikes had hit more than 1,000 targets … but the cost of the operation was staggering,” the report said. “So many precision munitions were being used, especially advanced long-range ones, that some Pentagon contingency planners were growing increasingly concerned about overall stocks and the implications for any situation in which the United States might have to ward off an attempted invasion of Taiwan by China.”
OPINION: JOHN BOLTON: TRUMP’S FLAWED HOUTHI DEAL
THE PLANE, THE PLANE! Trump’s plan to accept a $400 million “luxury” 747 jetliner to use as a stopgap Air Force One continues to draw fire from critics in his party.
“I think it will attract very serious questions, if and when it happens. At this point, all we’ve heard about is something that might be a hypothetical,” said Senate Majority Leader John Thune (R-SD). “I’m sure that if and when it’s no longer a hypothetical, I can assure you there will be plenty of scrutiny of — of whatever that arrangement might look like.”
“Accepting gifts from foreign nations is never a good practice. It threatens intelligence and national security. Especially when that nation supports a terrorist organization and allows those terrorist regimes to live on its soil,” said former Trump U.N. Ambassador Nikki Haley on X. “Regardless of how beautiful the plane may be, it opens a door and implies the President and U.S. can be bought. If this were Biden, we would be furious.”
“I think many people don’t realize the current Air Force Ones are flying offices. They’re not flying palaces,” said former Trump national security adviser John Bolton on CNN, who noted the “free” jet isn’t really free. “It would be a complete redo of the airplane, if he wanted it.”
“I think the major objection here is the security objection. We don’t know what has happened to that plane. We don’t know who’s had access to it. And if they really wanted to bring it up to Air Force One standards, it would require significant overhaul for all kinds of reasons,” Bolton said. “The president needs air defense systems, it needs that and all the other things that go for Air Force One.”
TRUMP: ‘I BELIEVE THAT WE SHOULD HAVE THE MOST IMPRESSIVE PLANE’: In an interview with Sean Hannity conducted on the 38-year-old Air Force One on which he flew to the Middle East, Trump continued to express amazement that anyone would object to what he argues is essentially a transfer of military hardware to the Pentagon.
“My attitude is, why wouldn’t I accept a gift? We’re giving to everybody else. Why wouldn’t I accept a gift? Because it’s going to be a couple of years, I think, before the Boeings are finished,” Trump said. “And they will be wonderful when they’re finished. But that’s a long time.”
“We give a lot of gifts. We give too many gifts to be honest with you. We give gifts to defend countries. They wouldn’t even exist — many countries wouldn’t even exist. All over the world, countries wouldn’t even exist,” he continued. “I thought it was a beautiful gesture. Now, there are those that say we shouldn’t be accepting gifts to the Defense Department, and I would say only a stupid person would say that. Why wouldn’t we do that?”
“It helps us out because we’ll have a relatively new plane instead of having 40-year-old planes. These planes are 40 years old and that’s not representative of our country,” he said. “The United States of America. I believe that we should have the most impressive plane.”
WHAT IS THE EMOLUMENTS CLAUSE? THE ETHICS RULE QATAR’S PLANE TO TRUMP COULD FLOUT
THE RUNDOWN:
Washington Examiner: Trump drops sanctions on Syria and previews expansion of Abraham Accords in Saudi Arabia
Washington Examiner: Sean Hannity sees ‘desire’ from Saudi Arabia to work with Trump
Washington Examiner: Trump’s ‘America First’ policy leaves Israel uneasy
Washington Examiner: Why the US needs Trump’s Golden Dome: Intel agency illustrates the weapons that enemies are stockpiling
Washington Examiner: Trump’s authority to declare tariffs ’emergency’ challenged in first court hearing
Washington Examiner: Pope Leo XIV’s brother says there could be ‘bumps’ with Trump but dismisses idea of ‘woke’ pope
Washington Examiner: US’s global reputation faces blowback after Trump’s resurgence
Washington Examiner: White House mocks criticism of news wires cut from Saudi trip
Washington Examiner: What is the emoluments clause? The ethics rule Qatar’s plane to Trump could flout
Washington Examiner: Opinion: John Bolton: Trump’s flawed Houthi deal
Washington Examiner: Opinion: Saudi Arabia will likely cooperate with Israel once Gaza war ends: Hugh Hewitt
Breaking Defense: At Nearly $142 Billion, White House Claims Largest Defense Deal ‘In History’ with Saudi Arabia
Reuters: Exclusive: Houthi ceasefire followed US intel showing militants sought off-ramp –
Inside Defense: McConnell: White House ‘Skinny Budget’ Sets Stage for Defense Investment ‘Cliff’
AP: Hegseth’s Plan to Cut Senior Military Jobs Could Hit More Than 120 High-Ranking Officers
Wall Street Journal: Israel Targeted Hamas Leader Mohammed Sinwar in Gaza Airstrike
New York Times: In Private, Some Israeli Officers Admit That Gaza Is on the Brink of Starvation
Defense One: How China’s Tech Giants Wired the Gulf
Air & Space Forces Magazine: Meink Confirmed as 27th Secretary of the Air Force
Air & Space Forces Magazine: Nominee for Air Force Manpower Faces Breezy Senate Hearing
Defense One: JSOC Commander Likely to Be SOCOM Pick, Sources Say
Air & Space Forces Magazine: USAF’s Planned E-7 Fleet on Trump’s Chopping Block
SpaceNews: How Earth Observation Satellite Operators Are Teaming Up to Tip and Cue One Another
Air & Space Forces Magazine: Air Force Launching New Artificial Intelligence ‘Center of Excellence’
Military.com: Dozens of Air Force Families Disenrolled from Day Care at New Mexico Base as Staffing Woes Grow
Forbes: Opinion: Prioritize Warfighting in Senior US Military Rank Reductions
THE CALENDAR:
WEDNESDAY | MAY 14
9:30 a.m. 1400 L St. NW — Atlantic Council and the Lithuanian Ministry of National Defense discussion: “Navigating a New Era of NATO,” with Rep. Mike Turner (R-OH); and Lithuanian Minister of National Defense Dovile Sakaliene https://www.atlanticcouncil.org/event/navigating-a-new-era-of-nato
10 a.m. 2362-A Rayburn — House Appropriations Homeland Security Subcommittee “Oversight Hearing – U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement, with testimony from Acting Immigration and Customs Enforcement Director Todd Lyons http://appropriations.house.gov
12 p.m. Antalya, Turkey — An informal two-day meeting of NATO foreign ministers begins. https://www.nato.int/cps/en/natohq/events
2 p.m. 2008 Rayburn — House Appropriations Committee Homeland Security Subcommittee “Oversight Hearing – The United States Coast Guard,” with testimony from Adm. Kevin Lunday, acting commandant of the Coast Guard http://appropriations.house.gov
2 p.m. H-140, U.S. Capitol — House Appropriations Defense Subcommittee “Oversight Hearing — The United States Navy and Marine Corps,” with testimony from Navy Adm. James Kilby, acting chief of naval operations; John Phelan, secretary of the Navy; and Gen. Eric Smith, commandant of the Marine Corps http://appropriations.house.gov
3 p.m. 2118 Rayburn — House Armed Services RDY Subcommittee hearing: “Energy, Installations, and Environment Update,” with testimony from Robert Thompson, acting assistant secretary of defense for energy, installations, and environment; Daniel Klippstein, performing the duties of assistant secretary of the Army for installations, energy and environment; Brenda Johnson-Turner, performing the duties of assistant secretary of the navy for energy, installations and environment; and Michael Saunders, acting assistant secretary of the Air Force for energy, installations and environment http://www.armedservices.house.gov
3:30 p.m. 2212 Rayburn — House Armed Services Strategic Forces Subcommittee hearing on “National Security Space Programs,” with testimony from Andrea Yaffe, acting principal deputy assistant secretary of defense for space policy Chris Scolese, director, National Reconnaissance Office; Vice Adm. Frank Whitworth, director, National Geospatial-Intelligence Agency; and Maj. Gen. Stephen Purdy, acting assistant secretary of the Air Force for space acquisition and integration http://www.armedservices.house.gov
3 p.m. 216 Hart — Senate Veterans’ Affairs ranking member Richard Blumenthal (D-CN) holds a forum on how cuts to Veterans Affairs Department care and benefits are endangering implementation of the “PACT Act,” a “bipartisan law signed in August 2022 to deliver generations of toxic-exposed veterans and survivors their earned health care and benefits.” https://x.com/SVACDems
THURSDAY | MAY 15
7 a.m. Antalya, Turkey — An informal two-day meeting of NATO foreign ministers concludes with a press conference from NATO Secretary General Mark Rutte . https://www.nato.int/cps/en/natohq/events
8 a.m. 111 Fairview Park Dr., Falls Church, Virginia — Potomac Officers Club Cyber Summit, with Bridget Bean, executive director, Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency; and Acting assistant secretary of defense for Cyber Policy Ashley Manning https://potomacofficersclub.com/events/2025-cyber-summit/
8 a.m. 700 M St. NE — Politico Security Summit with House Intelligence ranking member Rep. Jim Himes (D-CN); and Rep. Michael Lawler (R-NY) chairman, House Foreign Affairs Middle East and North Africa Subcommittee https://2025politicosecuritysummit.splashthat.com/Invite
10:30 a.m. 419 Dirksen ‚ Senate Foreign Relations Committee hearing to consider the nominations of Joel Rayburn to be assistant secretary of State for near Eastern affairs, and Chris Pratt to be assistant secretary of State for political-military affairs https://www.foreign.senate.gov/hearings/nominations-05-15-2025
FRIDAY | MAY 23
9 a.m. 550 Taylor Ave., Annapolis, Maryland — U.S. Naval Academy 2025 graduation and commissioning ceremony at Navy-Marine Corps Memorial Stadium https://www.usna.edu/CommissioningWeek/schedule.php
