29 December 2025
Ukraine
The US is offering Ukraine a 15-year security guarantee as part of the proposed peace plan. Ukrainian President Zelensky said he would prefer a 50-year security guarantee to deter Russia. Negotiators are still searching for breakthroughs on key issues, including which forces will withdraw from which areas and the fate of the Zaporizhzhia Nuclear Power Plant.
Niger
Niger’s military rulers ordered a general mobilization against armed groups. The emergency powers enacted also allow for the government to requisition people, property, and services to aid in the conflict. The country has been plagued by al-Qaeda and ISIS offshoots as well as repeated attacks by Boko Haram.
Taiwan
China is conducting a massive military drill around Taiwan as a demonstration to ‘separatist forces’. The army, navy, air force, and rocket forces are conducting drills, including live-fire exercises, just two days after the US announced an 11-billion-dollar defence deal with Taiwan.
Thailand-Cambodia
Thailand accuses Cambodia of breaking the newly signed ceasefire. The Thai army claims that more than 250 unmanned aerial vehicles were detected flying fromthe Cambodian side. The Cambodian Foreign Minister commented that it is “a small issue related to flying drones seen by both sides along the border line.”
Syria
Syrian government forces have been deployed to Latakia and Tartous after deadly unrest amid protests by the Alawite minority. The Syrian Ministry of Defence stated that army units with tanks and armoured vehicles had entered the centre of the cities after clashes killed four and injured a further 108 people.
United States
President Trump alluded to the US taking out a major facility in Venezuela. Trump told John Catsimatidis, the major Republican donor whose radio show airs on WABC, that “We just knocked out — I don’t know if you read or you saw — they have a big plant, or a big facility, where the ships come from. Two nights ago, we knocked that out. So we hit them very hard.” There have been no reports that such an attack was carried out.
Italy
Nine people were arrested in Italy for allegedly raising millions of Euros for Hamas. Over seven million euros were collected and dispersed over two years. The money was ostensibly collected as humanitarian aid for Palestinians, but was funnelled through a “complex fundraising system” to the militant group.
Social media wires
Chinese drone films the Taipei 101 skyscraper as part of Exercise Justice Mission 2025
Protests in Iran with chants of “Long Live the King”
Featured Photo: “Chinese destroyer Xi’an in Saint Petersburg, Russia” – Wikimedia Commons, 2025
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The Wires Brief is a daily breaking news report incorporating wire service news and social media updates. DefRep cannot verify the authenticity of social media reporters nor the accuracy of social media updates. Feature photos are altered with grayscale.