May 20th, 2026: Russia Strikes Chinese Vessel Before Putin-Xi Summit

The President's Daily Brief

The First TV

News, Politics

4.7 • 3.2K Ratings

🗓️ 20 May 2026

⏱️ 24 minutes

🔗️ Recording | iTunes | RSS

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Summary

In this episode of The President’s Daily Brief: Just before Vladimir Putin’s arrival in Beijing for talks with Xi Jinping, a Russian drone strike damages a Chinese-owned cargo vessel near Ukraine, creating an awkward and potentially revealing moment for the increasingly uneven Russia-China relationship. Russia launches one of its largest nuclear drills in years, mobilizing tens of thousands of troops, missile launchers, submarines, strategic bombers, and naval assets as tensions with Ukraine and NATO continue rising. NATO is reportedly considering a possible mission to help protect commercial shipping through the Strait of Hormuz if the critical waterway remains blocked into July, raising fears of a larger international military presence in the Gulf. In today’s Back of the Brief—Iran stages mass public weddings for couples reportedly volunteering for “self-sacrifice” in a future war with the United States and Israel. To listen to the show ad-free, become a premium member of The President’s Daily Brief by visiting https://PDBPremium.com. Please remember to subscribe if you enjoyed this episode of The President's Daily Brief. YouTube: youtube.com/@presidentsdailybrief Supremacy WW3: Limited time: download Supremacy: World War 3 for free via our link and get an exclusive Elite Bomber Seasonal Unit worth $25 - but only for the next 30 days: https://con.onelink.me/kZW6/k7svq17a VanMan: Go to http://vanman.shop/PDB and use code PDB for 15% off your first order. Cardiff: Get fast business funding without bank delays—apply in minutes with Cardiff and access up to $500,000 in same‑day funding at https://Cardiff.co/PDB Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Transcript

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0:18.7	You're not alone in this.
0:20.2	Visit Medexpress.com.
0:21.8	UK slash podcast to learn more. It's Wednesday, the 20th of May.
0:38.3	Welcome to the President's Daily Brief.
0:40.3	I'm Mike Baker, your eyes and ears on the world stage.
0:43.3	All right, that's get briefed.
0:45.3	First up, just before Vladimir Putin's arrival in Beijing,
0:50.3	a Russian drone strike damages a Chinese-owned vessel, casting an awkward shadow over his meeting with Xi Jinping.
0:58.2	Yeah, it's a bit uncomfortable.
1:00.7	Later in the show, Russia launches one of its largest nuclear drills in years, mobilizing tens of thousands of troops, missile launchers, submarines, and strategic bombers.
1:10.7	Plus, NATO is reportedly weighing a possible mission to protect commercial shipping in the
1:16.3	Strait of Hormuz if the critical waterway remains blocked into July.
1:20.7	Well, to be fair, you wouldn't want to rush into anything.
1:24.1	It's best to hold a few more meetings and discussions to think about maybe doing something,
1:29.0	possibly. And in today's back of the brief, Iran stages mass weddings for couples,
1:34.4	reportedly volunteering for self-sacrifice in a future war with the U.S. and Israel.
1:39.5	That does sound romantic. Makes you wonder if they had a DJ or a cover band. But first, today's PDB spotlight.
1:47.4	Just hours before Russian President Vladimir Putin arrived in Beijing for talks with Chinese
	...

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