As allies pressure Israel, US stays out

Politico

5 days ago

With help from Phelim Kine, Connor O'Brien and Daniel Lippman
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International pressure on Israel to end its military operations in the Gaza Strip is escalating following a strike against the enclave's only Catholic church and the continued killings of Palestinians seeking humanitarian aid.
It's just not coming from the Trump administration right now.
Top European Union officials lashed Israel today for its treatment of civilians. European Union President URSULA VON DER LEYEN wrote in a post on X that 'the images from Gaza are unbearable.' Von der Leyen was echoing comments from EU foreign policy chief KAJA KALLAS, who wrote in her own X post that 'the killing of civilians seeking aid in Gaza is indefensible' and 'all options remain on the table if Israel doesn't deliver on its pledges.'
Kallas and von der Leyen's remarks follow similar declarations from the foreign ministers of several European countries and the King of Belgium, as part of a broader condemnation of Israel's actions by Western allies. Progressive leaders, too, from a spate of European and Latin American countries, have reiterated their calls for an arms embargo against Israel in recent weeks.
Israel, for its part, has argued that criticism of its war actions hasn't placed enough responsibility on Hamas for its role in exacerbating human suffering in the enclave and starting the war.
Absent from the leaders criticizing Israel about its management of the humanitarian situation in Gaza are U.S. officials.
That's not to say the Trump administration hasn't condemned any of Israel's actions in the past week. President DONALD TRUMP, via White House spokesperson KAROLINE LEAVITT, made public his frustrations about the Gaza church strike last week. Ambassador MIKE HUCKABEE today also met with Palestinian Liberation Organization vice chair HUSSEIN AL-SHEIKH, one of MAHMOUD ABBAS' top lieutenants, and discussed prospects for a ceasefire.
Veteran Middle East peace negotiator AARON DAVID MILLER told NatSec Daily that some part of the administration's approach may reflect Israeli Prime Minister BENJAMIN NETANYAHU's political challenges. The Knesset goes on summer recess next week, and that could give Netanyahu more flexibility to agree to a deal and stave off a vote of no confidence that could topple his government.
'If he thinks Bibi is essentially moving toward an agreement … in the next two weeks, once the Knesset adjourns, then I think Trump probably figures 'why do I want to make a major issue out of this now?'' Miller said. 'If two or three weeks go by during the recess and there's no ceasefire, then you're probably talking about a different story.'
Critics of Israel are skeptical that absent U.S. pressure, Israel will change course, and that European pressure may not go far enough.
'The United States clearly is the one country that could very quickly make a difference if it chose to,' said MATT DUSS, executive vice president at the Center for International Policy think tank in Washington. Duss added that Europe's decision to respond cautiously to Israeli actions (such as not blocking arms sales or taking other specific actions against Israel yet) is likely a reflection of their fears that the Trump administration will retaliate against them if they go further in punishing Israel.
For now, Israel is showing no signs it will change its approach to the war in Gaza. The Israeli military has expanded operations in central Gaza City and raided World Health Organization buildings in the enclave today.
The Inbox
A GREAT DEAL FOR WHOM? Philippine President FERDINAND MARCOS JR. was welcomed warmly by Trump today at the White House — but he appears to have walked away only with a Trump pledge to lower tariffs on his country from 20 percent to 19 percent.
The Philippines is an increasingly important Asian ally to the U.S., especially as China ramps up maritime activity in the South China Sea. Manila and Beijing have already clashed over the disputed Scarborough Shoal.
Early in the afternoon, Trump praised Marcos on social media as a 'very good, and tough, negotiator.' But it appeared Trump didn't give in too much. 'It was a beautiful visit, and we concluded our Trade Deal, whereby The Philippines is going OPEN MARKET with the United States, and ZERO Tariffs. The Philippines will pay a 19% Tariff,' the president wrote.
It wasn't immediately clear if the Philippine leaders had formally agreed to such terms.
Marcos met with Secretary of State MARCO RUBIO and Defense Secretary PETE HEGSETH on Monday.
UKRAINE BITES ANTI-CORRUPTION WATCHDOGS: Ukrainian lawmakers voted today in favor of measures that critics say would undermine efforts to battle corruption in the country, our colleagues Veronika Melkozerova and Yurii Stasiuk report.
The parliament vote brings the independent National Anti-Corruption Bureau of Ukraine and the Special Anti-Corruption Prosecutor's Office under the oversight of Ukraine's prosecutor general — a political appointee of President VOLODYMYR ZELENSKYY.
Critics allege the move, if approved by Zelenskyy, robs the watchdogs of their independence. It also could hurt Ukraine's long-term goal of joining the European Union, as EU enlargement chief MARTA KOS called the Tuesday vote 'a serious step back.'
Meanwhile, Ukrainian and Russian representatives are planning to meet Wednesday for a new round of talks about peace and exchanging prisoners. If held, the talks would be the first in around seven weeks.
CHINA'S MEMENTO MANIA: The Chinese government is eyeing travel souvenirs as part of its efforts to fend off an alleged uptick in foreign espionage operations.
China's Ministry of State Security issued a warning today to Chinese citizens traveling overseas that seemingly innocuous tourist trinkets could be covert spyware designed to steal state secrets.
Chinese travelers should be wary of gifts from foreign citizens, including earrings, necklaces and key rings, that could have secret functions, 'including cameras, listening devices and tracking features,' the ministry said on its social media platform, per the South China Morning Post. Beijing's warning is the latest in a series of initiatives launched this year aimed at alerting the public to perceived espionage dangers, including romantic encounters with foreign citizens and contact with foreign scholars.
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Keystrokes
CHINA BEHIND SHAREPOINT HACK: Chinese hackers are behind a sweeping cyberattack targeting users of Microsoft server software across the globe, our own John Sakellariadis and Dana Nickel report.
At least two federal agencies are among the roughly 100 organizations that are suspected of being breached in the ongoing hack, two U.S. officials told John and Dana. Microsoft blamed three separate Chinese-aligned hacking groups in a blog post this morning.
Additional hacking groups unrelated to China have already started exploiting the software flaw, which affects certain versions of Microsoft's popular workplace collaboration platform, SharePoint. The snowballing incident is one of the worst breaches of the second Trump administration, and it is likely to amp up scrutiny of the tech giant's technology products.
'Government agencies have become dependent on a company that not only doesn't care about security, but is making billions of dollars selling premium cybersecurity services to address the flaws in its products,' Sen. RON WYDEN (D-Ore.) told John and Dana.
The Complex
GARDEN STATE DISPATCH: Nearly the entire New Jersey congressional delegation is urging Army Secretary DAN DRISCOLL to back off a major acquisition reform plan, the latest salvo in a wave of bipartisan resistance to his Army Transformation Initiative.
In a bipartisan letter scooped by our colleagues in Morning Defense, the lawmakers argued the shakeup — which would see 12 acquisition units responsible for managing major weapons systems reorganized into seven broader offices centered on mission areas — would 'cripple' the state's Picatinny Arsenal and set back Army modernization. The arsenal is located in the northern New Jersey district of Rep. MIKIE SHERRILL (D-N.J.), who organized the letter and is the Democratic candidate for governor.
'While the Army's proposal claims it will lead to the increased development of weapons and ammunition, this is false,' they wrote to Driscoll and Hegseth.
The lawmakers argue the move erodes a highly specialized workforce and reverses two decades of progress after Congress pushed the Army to consolidate its ammunition acquisition process in the early 2000s. The changes, the lawmakers say, would cost Picatinny nearly $1 billion in federal funds and 1,000 jobs.
The broadside is the latest complaint from Capitol Hill about Driscoll's ambitious overhaul, which he contends is overdue after decades of the Army buying weapons that won't help in a future conflict in the Pacific. In a statement, Driscoll said 'outdated equipment and organizational structures' must be urgently replaced with 'war-winning capabilities.'
ARMED NEUTRALITY: The historically neutral country of Austria is determined to double its military budget over the next seven years, its chancellor has told The New York Times.
The comments from CHRISTIAN STOCKER underscore how much the security situation has changed in Europe in recent years. Austria is not a member of NATO and its military is relatively small compared to its neighbors. It is one of the countries where world leaders on opposing sides of an issue tend to meet because of its neutrality.
But the fact that its leaders want to spend more on defense shows they worry about the long-term fall-out of Russia's invasion of Ukraine and Trump administration wariness of NATO.
According to the Times, the additional spending, roughly $5.8 billion, could go in part toward air capabilities, such as fighter jets and helicopters.
On the Hill
GARBARINO GETS THE GAVEL: Republican ANDREW GARBARINO of New York has won the chair of the House Homeland Security Committee.
He defeated others for the post in part by focusing on his background in cybersecurity policy. Garbarino has been the chair of the panel's Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Protection subcommittee. He also highlighted his experience as an impeachment manager against former Homeland Security Secretary ALEJANDRO MAYORKAS.
Garbarino will take the gavel from the retiring GOP Rep. MARK GREEN of Tennessee.
FIRST IN NATSEC DAILY — BIPARTISAN ECON SECURITY BILL: Sens. MICHAEL BENNET (D-Colo.) and PETE RICKETTS (R-Neb.) are joining forces to boost U.S. cooperation with the Quad again, this time with an eye to economic security with the U.S.' Quad allies.
The Quad Economic Security Act would establish a working group that would hold crisis simulations to work through how best to respond to economic coercion from adversaries like China and potential supply chain disruptions. It'll also ensure that a forum exists to coordinate efforts between the U.S., Japan, Australia and India to secure critical infrastructure and bolster supply chain resiliency. And it'll boost projects in the region to secure port infrastructure and undersea cables, among other priorities for the Trump administration.
A Senate staffer, granted anonymity to speak freely about the strategic considerations behind the bill, told POLITICO the legislation is being introduced to provide a bipartisan boost to related efforts that are ongoing at the State Department. That increases the likelihood the bill's provisions could become U.S. policy, if not law.
Broadsides
UN-CULTURED: The Trump administration is — once again — pulling the U.S. out of UNESCO, the United Nations' cultural arm, which it says works against America First ideals and supports anti-Israel sentiment.
'UNESCO works to advance divisive social and cultural causes and maintains an outsized focus on the U.N.'s Sustainable Development Goals, a globalist, ideological agenda for international development at odds with our America First foreign policy,' State Department spokesperson TAMMY BRUCE said in a statement announcing the pullout. 'UNESCO's decision to admit the 'State of Palestine' as a member state is highly problematic, contrary to U.S. policy, and contributed to the proliferation of anti-Israel rhetoric within the organization.'
The withdrawal takes effect on Dec. 31, 2026, per the group's rules. The U.S. previously withdrew from UNESCO during the first Trump administration, so this latest move wasn't a surprise to the group's leaders.
'However regrettable, this announcement was anticipated, and UNESCO has prepared for it,' UNESCO's director general, AUDREY AZOULAY, said in a statement.
Transitions
— MORGAN ADAMSKI has joined PwC as a U.S. leader in its cyber, data and technology risk business. She previously was executive director and the highest-ranking civilian at U.S. Cyber Command.
— KRISTIN FORD is now VP for global strategy and engagement and professor of practice at Arizona State University. She previously was president and CEO of IREX.
— CHARLES HORN has been promoted to communications officer at the Center for a New American Security. He replaces ALEXA WHALEY, who is leaving the organization.
— MARGIE PALMIERI, the Pentagon's inaugural principal deputy chief of the Chief Digital and Artificial Intelligence Office, will depart the post in August after more than three years in the role.
— K2 tapped MARK SIMAKOVSKY, former deputy assistant administrator for Europe and Eurasia at USAID, as a senior adviser. He previously served at Beacon Global Strategies, DOD and State, and is a nonresident senior fellow at the Atlantic Council.
— Cornerstone Government Affairs added JESSIE CALIO, former executive director for defense appropriations at RTX, to its national security team. She previously held defense policy roles at Boeing, Textron, and the Pentagon, and was a military legislative aide to Rep. MIKE TURNER (R-Ohio).
— ARNE BAKER is now acting inspector general at the State Department. He most recently was acting deputy inspector general at State.
— LEONEL ROBLES JR. is now a program examiner at the Office of Management and Budget. Robles most recently was deputy for the National Capital Region Air Defense Facility at the U.S. Coast Guard.
— BEN FRIEDMANN is now VP of external affairs at the U.S. International Development Finance Corporation. He previously was deputy assistant secretary of state for global public affairs in the first Trump administration and is a RGA, NRSC and Google alum.
What to Read
— Matan Chorev and Joel Predd, Foreign Affairs: America Should Assume the Worst About AI
—Mercedes Ruehl, Henry Foy, Laura Dubois and Joe Leahy, Financial Times: Trump left a power vacuum at the UN. China saw an opportunity
— Rep. Elise Stefanik and Stephen Prince: Cyber warfare has arrived. Here's the United States' best defense.
Tomorrow Today
— Senate Foreign Relations Committee, 10 a.m.: Dismantling Transnational Criminal Organizations in the Americas
— House Armed Services Committee, 10 a.m.: Reforming Defense Acquisition to Deliver Capability at the Speed of Relevance
— House Foreign Affairs Committee, 10 a.m.: FY2026 State Department Posture: Bureau of Political Affairs
— House Select Strategic Competition Between the United States and the Chinese Communist Party Committee, 10 a.m.:'United We Stand: Strategies to Counter PRC Economic Coercion Against Democracies.'
— Congressional-Executive Commission on China, 10 a.m.: Stand with Taiwan: Countering the PRC's Political Warfare and Transnational Repression
— Foundation for Defense of Democracies, 12 p.m.: Surveying the U.S. Counterterrorism Landscape with Dr. SEBASTIAN GORKA
— Quincy Institute for Responsible Statecraft, 12 p.m.: Book discussion on 'Iran's Rise and Rivalry with the U.S. in the Middle East'
— House Middle East and North Africa Subcommittee, 2 p.m.: Bureau of Counterterrorism FY2026 Budget Posture
— Tom Lantos Human Rights Commission, 2 p.m.: Colombia: Challenges for Peace and Human Rights
— Senate Foreign Relations Near East, South Asia, Central Asia and Counterterrorism Subcommittee, 2:30 p.m.: U.S. Diplomatic Strategies for a Dynamic Middle East
Thanks to our editors, Rosie Perper and Katherine Long, whose attacks on our anti-corruption efforts will also undermine their bid to join the European Union.