| AWAITING PUTIN'S ANSWER: While Washington awaits Moscow's response to the proposed 30-day ceasefire, Russian President Vladimir Putin is giving an answer of sorts, unleashing another night of drone and missile attacks across a wide area of Ukraine and donning military garb to visit his troops on the front line in Kursk, where he hopes to reclaim lost Russian territory before agreeing to any negotiations. "Around a hundred 'Shahed' drones attack Ukraine each night. Missile strikes are regular. Some of our civilian infrastructure and ports have been hit, unfortunately, including in Odesa," Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky posted on X. "The key factor is our partners' ability to ensure Russia's readiness not to deceive but to genuinely end the war. Because right now, Russian strikes have not stopped." On Wednesday, Putin received an update in Kursk from his top commander, Gen. Valery Gerasimov, who reported that Russia had regained control of 86% of the territory Ukraine captured in a surprise offensive last August. "The Kyiv regime planned to create a so-called strategic foothold in the Kursk Region, to be subsequently used as political leverage in potential talks with Russia," Gerasimov told Putin, according to the official Kremlin website. "These plans have fallen through." "Since the start of hostilities in the Kursk area, the enemy has lost over 67,000 personnel, comprising top-quality and highly motivated high-mobility troops of the Ukrainian armed forces, as well as foreign mercenaries," Gerasimov said. "We have also destroyed about 7,000 military systems, including 391 tanks, 2,780 armored combat vehicles, and over 1,000 artillery guns and mortars." Ukraine’s top commander, Gen. Oleksandr Syrskyi, said his priority is saving the lives of Ukrainian troops, suggesting his forces were pulling back to more defensible positions. UKRAINIAN FORCES FLEE KURSK AFTER LOSING KEY CITY WITHIN POCKET TRUMP: 'PEOPLE ARE GOING TO RUSSIA RIGHT NOW': During an Oval Office session with the visiting Irish Prime Minister, President Donald Trump expressed hope that Putin would respond favorably to his ceasefire overture, and said, "people are going to Russia right now as we speak," an apparent reference to his special envoy Steve Witkoff, who is expected to arrive with a U.S. delegation in Moscow today. "It’s up to Russia now. But we’ve had a good relationship with both parties actually, and we’ll see," Trump said. "Hopefully, we can get a ceasefire from Russia. And if we do, I think that would be 80% of the way to getting this horrible bloodbath finished." Trump said he has not yet spoken to Putin because "we just were able to get Ukraine to agree." "We’re going to know very soon. I’ve gotten some positive messages, but a positive message means nothing," he said. "But I will say last week, 2,500 young people died while we sit here and talk … That’s what makes me more angry than anything else." "You’ve had far more people die than they report, than these people report for whatever reason, but you had far more people. The numbers are far more devastating. You’ll find that out someday," Trump said. "I’ve seen the pictures, the satellite pictures that we see all the time. And it looks like Gettysburg in its prime, that was, they say, one of the most horrific battles ever … 2,000 people a week are dying. And they have families, and they have mothers, and they have fathers, and they have sisters, and they have brothers and friends, and they’re dying." US ENVOY WITKOFF TO TRAVEL TO RUSSIA THIS WEEK FOR NEGOTIATIONS RUBIO: 'NOT ABOUT HOW WE'RE GOING TO TAKE OVER CANADA': Meanwhile, Secretary of State Marco Rubio meets today his G7 counterparts in the scenic Quebec town of La Malbaie, where he's likely to face pointed questions about Trump's trade wars, not to mention his desire to make Canada America's 51st state. "Well, that's not what we're going to discuss at the G7," Rubio told reporters traveling with him as he flew from Saudi Arabia to Canada. "We have a lot of other things we work on together. We defend North America through NORAD and the airspace of our continent together, not to mention the issues of Ukraine and other commonalities. So we're going to be focused in the G7 on all of those things. That's what the meeting is about," Rubio said. "It is not a meeting about how we're going to take over Canada." That was followed by this exchange with a reporter, according to the State Department transcript: REPORTER: Are you concerned at all about the reception that you might be getting, particularly at the event? RUBIO: I don't know, should I be? What do you know that I don't know? REPORTER: They're unhappy. I don't know, you've got the tariffs in the last 12 hours, you've just seen this escalating trade war — not just with Canada but, with the exception of Japan, all the other members of the G7. RUBIO: Yeah, so what's your point? REPORTER: Are you worried about alienating the Canadians, that they wouldn't work with the United States? RUBIO: Yeah, I mean, they've invited us to come. We intend to go. The alternative is to not go. I think that would actually make things worse, not better. REPORTER: One alternative could be not to have tariffs … RUBIO: No, those are policy decisions. OPINION: TRUMP'S BRUTALLY BLUNT GAMBLING Good Thursday 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. CLICK HERE TO SIGN UP OR READ BACK ISSUES OF DAILY ON DEFENSE HAPPENING TODAY: SHUTDOWN SHOWDOWN IN THE SENATE: Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer (D-NY) signaled yesterday that Democrats are ready to shut the government down after being shut out of any input on the continuing resolution passed by the House that would keep funding basically at current levels for the rest of the fiscal year which ends Sept. 30. "Funding the government should be a bipartisan effort," Schumer said in brief remarks on the Senate floor. "But Republicans chose a partisan path, drafting their continuing resolution without any input — any input — from congressional Democrats," Schumer said. "Because of that, Republicans do not have the votes in the Senate to invoke cloture on the House CR." It's unclear if some 11th-hour compromise could prevent a shutdown before tomorrow's midnight deadline. Schumer is calling for a "clean CR" that would extend funding until April 11 while Congress works on an actual budget. "Here we are on the brink of a government shutdown, which will be entirely of the Democrats making if it happens," said Sen. John Thune (R-SD). "It is on them if this happens." "Chuck Schumer has a big decision to make," said House Speaker Mike Johnson (R-LA). "Is he going to cast a vote to keep the government open, or is he going to be blamed for shutting it down?" SENATE DEMOCRATS PUNT GOP PLAN TO AVERT SHUTDOWN IN FAVOR OF 30-DAY STOPGAP WICKER'S LAMENT: CR IS $150 BILLION SHORT: One Republican who will be holding his nose and voting for the continuing resolution is Sen. Roger Wicker (R-MS), chairman of the Armed Services Committee. Passage of the stopgap measure could mean no meaningful increase in the defense budget this year, something Wicker has been championing for over a year and was hopeful a Trump administration would deliver. "Let me say this about the CR: We repeatedly say — House and Senate, Republican and Democrat — that we never need to do this again, and for some reason, something comes up. Some group is unwilling to compromise and look at the long picture. And we find ourselves in this position," Wicker said in a statement. "The real flaw in the CR that we’ll be voting on later this week is that it doesn’t provide enough money … it does not provide adequate support for the military and for the challenges we have from four adversary nations – pacing challenges – plus Russia, plus North Korea, plus Iran that like never before have worked together to bring us ill." "Were it not for the prospect of a reconciliation bill that adds $150 billion for vital national security purposes, I could not vote for the continuing resolution as it is," Wicker said. "Unless something changes, I’ll have to swallow my words again this year and go ahead and pass it, because the alternative is so unpalatable and so dangerous." GITMO PLAN 'AN EXPENSIVE PHOTO OP': Yesterday, we learned that for unexplained reasons, the much-ballyhooed Pentagon plan to temporarily house "criminal" migrants at a makeshift facility at the Guantanamo Bay Naval Base came to a sudden, unexpected end when 40 men were flown from Gitmo to an ICE facility in Louisiana. "There are currently no migrants being held at Gitmo, and no flights scheduled to arrive with more migrants, Fox has learned. None of the 195 tents set up to hold migrants have been used because they do not meet ICE standards, according to several U.S. officials. The operation to build more tents was halted back in February, just several weeks after it was started," Fox Chief National Security Correspondent Jennifer Griffin posted on X, crediting the reporting Fox colleague Liz Friden. "Fox News has learned all the migrants held at Gitmo have been sent back to the U.S., and plans to send more to the U.S. Naval Station have been put on hold," Griffin posted. "The Administration's decision to take migrants to Gitmo appears at best to have been an expensive photo op." Griffin is on thin ice with her former Fox coworker, Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth, who accused Griffin last month of being a "Trump hater" and spreading "fake news" for accurately reporting that congressional Democrats were questioning expensive renovations to government housing not typically provided to civilians. "Any/all house repairs were going to happen no matter who was moving in — and were all initiated by DoD," Hegseth posted on Feb. 7, adding, "But Dems/Jen don't care about facts; they're just Trump haters." CLICK HERE TO READ MORE FROM THE WASHINGTON EXAMINER THE RUNDOWN: Washington Examiner: US envoy Witkoff to travel to Russia this week for negotiations Washington Examiner: Ukrainian forces flee Kursk after losing key city within pocket Washington Examiner: Russia rules out NATO peacekeepers in ceasefire negotiations Washington Examiner: NASA begins Trump-inspired cuts, closes DEI branch Washington Examiner: ICE arrests top 32,000 illegal immigrants since Trump took office Washington Examiner: Fentanyl's role in Trump's trade war with Canada explained Washington Examiner: Tom Rogan Opinion: How Trump fears and trusts Putin too much Washington Examiner: Hugo Gurdon Opinion: Trump's brutally blunt gambling Washington Examiner: Mahmoud Khalil to remain in Louisiana ICE center for now, judge rules Washington Examiner: Trump's steel and aluminum tariffs usher in new wave of retaliation from allies Washington Examiner: Trump to demand NATO allies 'pay their fair share' Washington Examiner: Canada retaliates with tariffs worth $21 billion amid trade war with Trump Washington Examiner: Dual 'land mines' of tariffs and war complicate Irish leader's White House visit Washington Examiner: Senate Democrats punt GOP plan to avert shutdown in favor of 30-day stopgap Washington Examiner: Trump continues to call Chuck Schumer a Palestinian AP: Pressed to accept a ceasefire in Ukraine, Putin seems likely to seek his own conditions Wall Street Journal: How Europe's Military Stacks Up Against Russia Without U.S. Support The Telegraph: Military helicopter pilots 'switching off life-saving safety system' Washington Post: Trump administration flies all remaining Guantánamo migrants back to U.S. AP: Trump says Ireland cheats the US as its leader joins him to celebrate St. Patrick's Day AP: Greenland's election winners push back against Trump's wish to take control of the island AP: Canada's incoming prime minister says he'll meet Trump if Canadian sovereignty is respected Wall Street Journal: America Turns to Ukraine to Build Better Drones Air & Space Forces Magazine: Pentagon Deploys Air Force Intel Analysts for Border Mission Military.com: Lawmakers File Bills to Create Space National Guard, Taking Trump Up on Promise Air & Space Forces Magazine: New Budget Deal Could Cost USAF Up to $14 Billion Defense News: Space Force Eyes Commercial Options for Space Surveillance Mission Air & Space Forces Magazine: Space Force Component Bosses: More Guardians Needed SpaceNews: Space Development Agency Adjusts Satellite Procurement Strategy Air & Space Forces Magazine: Retired Missileer Nominated to Be Air Force Manpower Secretary Aviation Week: Space Ops: Pondering the Potential of Sea-Based Launch Defense One: Consultant Tapped to Lead Industrial Policy as Pentagon Ponders Acquisition Reform Breaking Defense: DIU to Start Field Testing Quantum Sensors in Tough Conditions Military Times: 3D Printing Barracks? Military Eyes New Ways to Cut Construction Costs Breaking Defense: DAF Seeks Industry Feedback to Strengthen Platform One DevSecOps, Cloud Management THE CALENDAR: THURSDAY | MARCH 13 9:30 a.m. — Center for Strategic and International Studies virtual discussion: “War in Ukraine and Lessons for Asia,” with former U.S. Ambassador to Russia Michael McFaul, director of the Hoover Institution’s Institute for International Studies; Victor Cha, CSIS Korea chair; Mark Lippert, CSIS Korea chair; and Andy Lim, CSIS Korea chair https://www.csis.org/events/war-ukraine-and-lessons-asia-capital-cable-108 10:30 a.m. 419 Dirksen — Senate Foreign Relations Committee hearing on the nominations of Peter Hoekstra to be ambassador to Canada; George Glass to be ambassador to Japan; and Ronald Johnson to be ambassador to Mexico. http://foreign.senate.gov 11 a.m. — Wilson Center Global Europe Program virtual discussion: “Germany’s Election Aftermath: Implications for Foreign Policy,” with Thorsten Benner, director of the Global Public Policy Institute of Berlin; Christoph von Marschall, chief diplomatic correspondent at Der Tagesspiegel; and Robin Quinville, director of the WWC Global Europe Program https://www.wilsoncenter.org/event/germanys-election-aftermath 12 p.m 425 7th St. W— National Economists Club luncheon discussion: “The Canadian-U.S. bilateral economic relationship and implications of recent economic and trade-related developments,” with Jay Allen, economic minister at the Embassy of Canada https://national-economists.org/nec-event 12 p.m. — Council on Foreign Relations discussion: “The History and Future of U.S. Foreign Aid,” with Gayle Smith, former administrator U.S. Agency for International Development; and Margaret Talev, director, Syracuse University Institute for Democracy, Journalism and Citizenship https://tinyurl.com/mracdk5t 2 p.m. — Defense One virtual discussion: “State of Defense 2025: Navy and Marines,” with Air Force Chief of Staff Gen. David Allvin; Army Chief of Staff Gen. Randy George; Chief of Space Operations Gen. Chance Saltzman; and Marine Corps Commandant Gen. Eric Smith https://events.defenseone.com/state-of-defense 2 p.m. 1616 Rhode Island Ave. NW — Center for Strategic and International Studies discussion: “Collaborating for Resilience: Japanese and U.S. Industry Cooperation on MRO (maintenance, repair, and overhaul) for USAF Systems,” with Hideki Fukawa, councilor, Japanese Defense Ministry Defense Equipment Cooperation Division; and former Defense Department Director for Logistics retired Lt. Gen. Leonard Kosinski https://www.csis.org/events/collaborating-resilience | | | | "We have Ukraine ready to come to the table. Now we need to get Russia to come to the table. If they do and the shooting stops, I think that's a very good day in the world. Obviously no one here is pretending that that negotiation's going to be easy or fast or simple, but at least we've gotten to that point. If their answer is no, then obviously we'll have to deal with that and we'll have to at that point make decisions on that basis." | | Secretary of State Marco Rubio, speaking to reporters in Shannon, Ireland |
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