President Trump announced he authorized and ordered strikes against ISIS targets in Nigeria who are targeting Christians.

Working with the Nigerian government, President Trump ordered military strikes in Northwestern Nigeria intended to hit Islamic State terrorists who were targeting Christians in the African nation. The strikes follow months of warnings to the ISIS militants that further killing of Christians would result in action by the United States.

The media are quick to say President Trump conducted the strikes, without underlining the U.S. action was taken in coordination with the Nigerian government.

(VIA FOX) – […] U.S. Africa Command (AFRICOM) confirmed the attacks in a post on X on Thursday night. “At the direction of the President of the United States and the Secretary of War, and in coordination with Nigerian authorities, U.S. Africa Command conducted strikes against ISIS terrorists in Nigeria on Dec. 25, 2025, in Sokoto State,” the post read.

U.S. Ambassador to the U.N. Mike Waltz also weighed in after learning about the strikes on ISIS forces in Nigeria.

“Merry Christmas to the Christians in Nigeria and around the world who know tonight that the President of the United States will fight for them,” he said in a post on X.

Sen. Tom Cotton, R-Ark., said Thursday, “I commend President Trump, Secretary Hegseth, and our brave troops for these strikes against bloodthirsty ISIS savages who are not only persecuting Christians, but also have killed many Americans.” (read more)

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Today at 4:30pm ET President Trump and Secretary of War Pete Hegseth will be making an announcement. The president and secretary are expected to make the announcement from Palm Beach, Florida in regard to a shipbuilding initiative. Livestream Links Below:

UPDATE: Video Added

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Before getting to the details as released for media consumption, three facets deserve emphasis.

(1) The primary objective of Ukraine/EU has been a publicity campaign to retain influence and support. (2) U.S. Emissaries Witkoff and Kushner are silent on the announced negotiated result. (3) Ukraine’s lead negotiator Rustem Umerov notes, “There is a lot of noise and anonymous speculation in the media right now. Please don’t fall for rumors and provocations. The American team led by Steve Witkoff and Jared Kushner are working extremely constructively to help Ukraine find a way to a peace agreement that lasts.”

I would overlay that within the weeks of discussions it is easy to spot distance between Umerov and Zelenskyy, specifically as it pertains to the influence of the EU Leadership group.  Meaning, Zelenskyy is a puppet for the EU team, whereas Umerov appears more pragmatic and seemingly more focused on the interests of Ukraine.

Additionally, despite the violence and death in the war, Ukraine President Volodymyr Zelenskyy continues to say he is in no hurry to end the bloodshed.  This becomes more important to recognize when you look at the post-Berlin comments from Zelenskyy himself.

First, to the outcome of the negotiations as expressed by the EU Leadership team.

This is their official joint statement on their position within the framework.  Again, not signed or accepted by the U.S delegation. [SOURCE]

The Leaders welcomed significant progress on President Trump’s efforts to secure a just and lasting peace in Ukraine. They also welcomed the close work between President Zelenskyy’s and President Trump’s teams as well as European teams over the recent days and weeks. They agreed to work together with President Trump and President Zelenskyy to get to a lasting peace which preserves Ukrainian sovereignty and European security. Leaders appreciated the strong convergence between the United States, Ukraine and Europe.

Leaders agreed that ensuring the security, sovereignty, and prosperity of Ukraine was integral for wider Euro-Atlantic security. They were clear that Ukraine and its people deserved a prosperous, independent, and sovereign future, free from fear of future Russian aggression.

Both the US and European leaders committed to work together to provide robust security guarantees and economic recovery support measures for Ukraine in the context of an agreement on ending the war. This would include commitments to:

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Today, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy arrived in Berlin to meet with President Trump emissaries Steve Witkoff and Jared Kushner ahead of the previously scheduled Monday summit with the Coalition of The Willing, U.K, France and Germany.

The wording used by Zelenskyy tells the dynamic: “We are currently preparing for meetings with the U.S. side and our European friends in the coming days. Berlin will host many events.”

The “U.S side” and “European friends”, a notable distinction in the terminology as Zelenskyy notes his friendship with his European stakeholders.

Today, Sunday, Zelenskyy notes, “I am already in Germany. Today’s agenda includes a meeting with the American negotiating team. We are focusing on how to reliably guarantee Ukraine’s security so that the experience of the Budapest Memorandum and Russia’s invasion are never repeated. We are counting on constructive talks.”

For President Zelenskyy and his EU coalition, everything revolves around the security guarantees.  As noted by Politico:

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No sedition here, as President Trump attends the Army-Navy game in Baltimore, Maryland to thunderous applause and celebration.  Full video below:

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Two U.S. National Guard servicemen were killed along with a U.S. civilian interpreter in an ISIS attack in Syria.  Three additional American troops were wounded. President Trump said during an impromptu presser at the White House, the three wounded Americans “seem to be doing pretty well.” The U.S. military said the gunman was killed in the attack. Syrian officials said the attack also wounded members of Syria’s security forces.

Posting on Truth Social, President Trump:  “We mourn the loss of three Great American Patriots in Syria, two soldiers, and one Civilian Interpreter. Likewise, we pray for the three injured soldiers who, it has just been confirmed, are doing well. This was an ISIS attack against the U.S., and Syria, in a very dangerous part of Syria, that is not fully controlled by them. The President of Syria, Ahmed al-Sharaa, is extremely angry and disturbed by this attack. There will be very serious retaliation.” 

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(VIA AP) – […] The shooting took place near historic Palmyra, according to the state-run SANA news agency, which earlier said two members of Syria’s security force and several U.S. service members had been wounded. The casualties were taken by helicopter to the al-Tanf garrison near the border with Iraq and Jordan.

Syria’s Interior Ministry spokesman Nour al-Din al-Baba said a gunman linked to IS opened fire at the gate of a military post. (more)

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NATO General Secretary Mark Rutte and German Chancellor Frederich Merz hold a press conference as a meeting in Paris this weekend (13th) and Berlin on Monday (15th) are scheduled to finalize EU terms for a negotiated Ukraine-Russia ceasefire.

Within the remarks Merz notes a preliminary document outlining possible land concessions has recently been sent to the Trump administration, and that set of documents likely includes an outline for ‘security guarantees’ assembled by the coalition of the willing (Germany, France and UK). “It mainly concerns the question of what territorial concessions Ukraine is prepared to make,” Mr Merz said. He stressed that any decision on land concessions was up to the Ukrainian government and its people.

Chancellor Merz said, “If we continue as imagined, there will be talks with the US administration over the weekend and there might be a meeting at the beginning of next week in Berlin. Whether the US administration will take part in the meeting depends on the papers we are working on [at present].”

Speaking to an audience together with NATO Secretary Rutte, German Foreign Minister Johann Wadephul, emphasized the 28-point outline originally created by Trump, Rubio, Witkoff and Ukraine/Russia officials was dead. “As the 28-point plan was mentioned, it is no longer existing,” Wadephul said. “We had some influence on it” he remarked, seemingly bragging about how Europe destroyed the U.S plan.

Another report on Thursday said Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni urged Volodymyr Zelensky to accept “painful concessions” for a peace deal. According to the Italian newspaper Corriere della Sera, tensions surfaced between the two leaders as Ms Meloni pressed Mr Zelensky to accede to US demands.  “There is sufficient evidence indicating that not everything went smoothly and that some differences were clearly expressed for the first time by both parties,” the newspaper stated.

Meanwhile back in Washington, DC, President Trump delivered remarks on the Ukraine-EU negotiations yesterday, noting his discussions with the European team and the potential for Trump’s emissaries to attend either the Paris or Berlin meeting if something productive can be gained from it.

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President Trump had previously said that Zelenskyy has until Christmas to make a decision on the negotiated ceasefire and peace plan organized over weeks of discussions between the U.S., Ukraine and Russian intermediaries.

Ukraine President Zelenskyy then rushed to Paris, London, Brussels and Rome to coordinate with European stakeholder interests. [Notably, he never prioritized discussion of the proposal with the people of Ukraine.]

Zelenskyy then announced his European partners were close to finalizing a counterproposal deal.

Interestingly, the leaders of Germany, U.K., France and Ukraine then leak they had a 2-hour phone call with President Trump.  It’s interesting, because President Trump chose to stay quiet about the call as the “coalition of the willing” plotted their next move to keep the USA attached to their collective destiny.

UK Prime Minister Sir Keir Starmer, French President Emmanuel Macron and German Chancellor Friedrich Merz said they “agreed that this was a critical moment – for Ukraine, its people and for shared security across the Euro-Atlantic region”. A White House official confirmed the call took place but did not give details. {link}

British Prime Minister Sir Keir Starmer spoke with the other heads of state, declaring that they were at a “critical moment,” according to a spokesperson for Downing Street. “The Prime Minister Keir Starmer spoke to the president of the United States, Donald Trump, the president of France, Emmanuel Macron, and the Chancellor of Germany, Friedrich Merz today,” they said. {link}

German Chancellor Friedrich Merz then announces the “coalition of the willing”, which is specifically Germany, Great Britain and France, will reassemble with President Zelenskyy to solidify the next steps in the “security guarantee” part of their proposal. Previously, the trio would only commit to be “willing” if the USA agreed to protect their military forces on the non-NATO territory of Ukraine.

President Volodymyr Zelenskyy confirmed that Ukraine, together with American and European partners, is working on three separate documents related to security and the country’s postwar development. {link}

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Yesterday, Ukraine President Volodymr Zelenskyy traveled to London to meet with British PM Keir Starmer, German Chancellor Friedrich Merz and French President Emmanuel Macron.

As expected, part of the Zelenskyy meeting with the “coalition of the willing” included a briefing by Ukraine negotiator Rustem Umerov, the secretary of Ukraine’s National Security and Defense Council, who held detailed consultations for three days last week in Miami with Trump’s envoys Steve Witkoff and Jared Kushner.

President Zelenskyy then departed London traveling with his media entourage to Brussels for the next round of discussions with the European Union stakeholders, financiers and politicians. During the trip Zelenskyy told his media stenographers, “Under our laws, under international law — and under moral law — we have no right to give anything away. That is what we are fighting for.”

The U.K, France and Germany support Zelenskyy’s position that he is not going to concede any territory to the Russian Federation, specifically the 30% of the Donbas area in Eastern Ukraine currently at the heart of the physical conflict.

The 30% issue surrounds the Donetsk region in Ukraine, which includes the cities of Kramatorsk and Sloviansk. Russia is currently pushing deep into fortified Ukraine resistance in this region with a population of around 100,000. Zelenskyy claims losing this area would allow Putin to invade the Dnipropetrovsk, Zaporizhzhia and Kharkiv regions.

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The House Armed Services Committee has released the full text of the National Defense Authorization Act for 2026 [SEE TEXT HERE]. The massive bill consists of 3,086 pages, making the fiscal year 2026 NDAA longer than the manuscript of War and Peace. Most people will never read it, so a 24-page Summary Version is Here.

The FY 2026 NDAA authorizes $892.6B for defense, which includes $153B for procurement, $142B for Research and Development, and $235B for military personnel. The legislation: Codifies 15 Trump EOs on military reform, border security, and DEI elimination. Boosts shipbuilding, aircraft, munitions, funds Taiwan aid and Israel programs, reforms acquisitions, enhances border support including $900M for counter-narcotic operations and includes a 3.8% pay raise and quality-of-life improvements.

There is a $400 million authorization for Ukraine support, however, the amount is ‘authorized’ not ‘appropriated’ – which would have to come in a separate spending bill.

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