The following is an edited transcript excerpt from <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/episode/mks-ep-1936-sub?elementPosition=1&amp;row=0&amp;rowHeadline=Recent+Episodes&amp;rowType=Horizontal+Show+Episodes+Carousel">The Michael Knowles Show</a>.
* * *
President Trump just gave the finest one liner in the history of press conferences. 
So here is President Trump, sitting in the Oval Office yesterday with the Japanese prime minister, who seems to adore him. When she arrives at the White House, for example, she runs up and gives him a big hug. He proceeds to show her the Hall of Presidents, on the White House little walkway there by the Rose Garden, and she sees Joe Biden&#8217;s picture is just an auto pen and seems to get a huge kick out of it.
Trump also got along famously with Shinzo Abe. So, there&#8217;s something about Trump and Japan — they get along great. It&#8217;s like white on rice, to use an apt metaphor.
In any case, while they&#8217;re sitting in the Oval Office, a reporter asks President Trump why he did not tell everyone about the attack on Iran before he launched it.
“Japan and U.S. are very good friends. But one question — why didn&#8217;t you tell U.S. allies in Europe and Asia, like Japan, about the war before taking action? We are very confused.”
Trump responded, “Well, one thing — you don’t want to signal too much. When we go in, we went in very hard, and we didn’t tell anybody about it because we wanted surprise. Who knows better about surprise than Japan? Okay? Why didn’t you tell me about Pearl Harbor? Right? He’s asking me, do you believe in surprise? I think much more so than us.”
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet">
Trump: &#8220;Who knows better about surprise than Japan? Why didn&#8217;t you tell me about Pearl Harbor?&#8221; <a href="https://t.co/O5t0EWoOkw">pic.twitter.com/O5t0EWoOkw</a>
— Aaron Rupar (@atrupar) <a href="https://twitter.com/atrupar/status/2034664767256658127?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">March 19, 2026</a></blockquote>
<script async src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script>
Just magnificent. I don’t know how to frame a clip, but that’s it. No one will ever beat it.
Jeremy Boreing took me out for dinner last night for my birthday, and we were talking about how Trump is Elvis. Trump is Elvis. Now, Jeremy has criticized Trump many times over the years, but he believes the guy is just amazing at this. He’s Elvis.
So, Trump is sitting there, and he gets the question: Why didn’t you tell people about the attack?
And he starts to give a serious answer by saying: Well, you know, I didn’t want to signal…
And then that showbiz brain kicks in: Hey — who knows more about surprises than you guys?
At that point he could have gotten up, grabbed a stool, lit a cigarette, spotlight on him like he’s in a comedy club in New York: Let me tell you about these guys… we got some of our Japanese friends here, am I right? You guys know a little bit about surprises? Why didn’t you tell me about Pearl Harbor?
Just a great bit.
<a href="https://www.dailywire.com/episode/mks-ep-1936-sub?elementPosition=1&amp;row=0&amp;rowHeadline=Recent+Episodes&amp;rowType=Horizontal+Show+Episodes+Carousel"><img loading="lazy" decoding="async" class="size-large wp-image-1054531 aligncenter" src="https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2026/03/MK-watch-now-1-1024x171.jpg" alt="DailyWire+" width="1024" height="171" srcset="https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2026/03/MK-watch-now-1-1024x171.jpg 1024w, https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2026/03/MK-watch-now-1-300x50.jpg 300w, https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2026/03/MK-watch-now-1-768x128.jpg 768w, https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2026/03/MK-watch-now-1-1536x256.jpg 1536w, https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2026/03/MK-watch-now-1.jpg 1800w" sizes=" (max-width: 1024px) 100vw, 1024px" /></a>
I’m going to miss him very, very much after his fourth or fifth term — whatever. I know, at a certain point, after he’s 120 years old, life will take its course. But I’m just sorry we’re already in the second term. We’ve only got, what, two or three terms left?
It’s beautiful.
And it’s not just funny — it’s a serious point. The serious point he’s making is that you don’t telegraph your moves when you’re engaging in war, even when you’re engaging in ordinary politics. And he conveys that serious point with humor, and people take note.
Antonin Scalia used to do this in his Supreme Court opinions and dissents. He would use funny lines like “applesauce,” and “did you ask the nearest hippie?” These are real lines Scalia used. Why did he do it? Because it&#8217;s funny and it grabs your attention. It’s memorable. It sticks in the minds of law students and it&#8217;s going to shape American jurisprudence.
Same thing here.
Very, very funny — and very, very smart.

US-JAPAN-POLITICS-DIPLOMACY-TAKAICHI-TRUMP

President Trump Drops The Greatest One Liner In Press Conference History

Donald Trump

Iran

Japan

Middle East

Opinion

Pearl Harbor

White House

America&#8217;s allies are finally ready to step up to the plate after years of dithering on the Iranian threat.
Those allies are ready with all their combined strength: Germany, France, UK, Italy, the Netherlands, Canada, and Japan. They are firing on all cylinders with urgency, resolve, and action.
Yes, that&#8217;s right. Our allies, who have been reliant on our largesse and mutual defense for decades, finally announced that they are going to help us, their patron state, the United States — with a very strongly-worded letter.
Our allies are doing what they do best. They are saying things.
At some point, the questions have to be asked: Who are our true allies? Who is actually stepping up to the plate? Who is merely judging from the sidelines?
In lieu of any real world support, our valiant allies have now issued a strongly worded letter.
<a href="https://www.dailywire.com/episode/bss-ep-2392-sub?elementPosition=1&amp;row=6&amp;rowHeadline=Latest+Episodes&amp;rowType=Horizontal+Show+Episodes+Carousel"><img loading="lazy" decoding="async" class="size-large wp-image-974957" src="https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2025/09/511983dad25841c8b1ec058d75769bbe-1024x171.webp" alt="DailyWire+" width="1024" height="171" srcset="https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2025/09/511983dad25841c8b1ec058d75769bbe-1024x171.webp 1024w, https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2025/09/511983dad25841c8b1ec058d75769bbe-300x50.webp 300w, https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2025/09/511983dad25841c8b1ec058d75769bbe-768x128.webp 768w, https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2025/09/511983dad25841c8b1ec058d75769bbe-1536x256.webp 1536w, https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2025/09/511983dad25841c8b1ec058d75769bbe-2048x341.webp 2048w" sizes=" (max-width: 1024px) 100vw, 1024px" /></a>
Here&#8217;s what the letter says:
<blockquote>We condemn in the strongest terms, recent attacks by Iran on unarmed commercial vessels in the Gulf, attacks on civilian infrastructure, including oil and gas installations, and the de facto closure of the Strait of Hormuz by Iranian forces. We express our deep concern about the escalating conflict.
We call on Iran to cease immediately its threats, laying of mines and drone and missile attacks and other attempts to block the strait to commercial shipping and to comply with U.N. Security Council Resolution 28-17. We call for an immediate comprehensive moratorium on attacks on civilian infrastructure, including oil and gas installations. We call on all states to respect international law and uphold the fundamental principles of international prosperity and security.</blockquote>
Whoa, dude. Harsh stuff.
Iran must be quaking in its boots. Our allies are saying things.
The Europeans, Japan? They&#8217;re expressing “deep concern.” Not “regular” concern. “Deep” concern. They are calling on Iran to do things and to stop being so mean.
But wait, isn&#8217;t there some sort of commitment to action in the letter?
The statement does say this: “We express our readiness to contribute to appropriate efforts to ensure a safe passage through the Strait. We welcome the commitment of nations who are engaging in preparatory planning.”
That sounds good, right? But what does “appropriate efforts” mean? Who decides what is “appropriate?”
According to <a href="https://www.axios.com/2026/03/19/strait-hormuz-coalition-allies-statement-uk">Axios</a>, “On Thursday morning, NATO head Mark Rutte and British Prime Minister Keir Starmer spoke with French President Emmanuel Macron and convinced him to lift his opposition to the political statement of support, while leaving the discussion on the practical steps for later.”
Now, to be fair to Rutte, there&#8217;s not much he can do. He&#8217;s the head of NATO, but he can&#8217;t simply deploy force. He certainly recognizes the Iranian threat, and he would like to avoid alienating the United States.
He said, “We all agree, as we always did, that it was crucial for Iran not to get its hands on a nuclear capability, a ballistic missile capability. And what the U.S. is doing at the moment is degrading that capability of Iran. And I think that&#8217;s very important. This is important for European security, for the Middle East. It is vital for Israel itself.”
 The Japanese are also paying lip service here; the Japanese prime minister told President Trump, “I firmly believe that it is only you, Donald, who can achieve peace across the world,” adding they would “reach out to many of the partners in the international community, to achieve our objective together.”
So what are our allies actually committing to?
Nothing. This sort of stupidity is nothing new for our allies, who are quite fond of empty verbiage as a substitute for credible threat of force.
Go all the way back to 1919, when the covenant of the League of Nations was integrated into the Treaty of Versailles. That attempt to form a family of nations — while it was not a success — led to 1928, when 15 countries came together to sign what was called the Kellogg-Briand Pact.
It outlawed war.
Did you know that? That war was outlawed in 1928? The signatories included France, the US, UK, Ireland, Canada, Australia, New Zealand, South Africa, India, Belgium, Poland, Czechoslovakia, Germany, Italy, and Japan. 47 more nations joined in as well.
And then, three years later, in 1931, Japan invaded Manchuria and nobody did anything. And by 1941, every single nation that had signed the treaty, with the exception of Ireland — which basically stayed out of the war and sided with Germany — was enmeshed in World War II.
Empty verbiage.
The same thing holds true today. For decades, our allies have pretended to oppose the Iranian terror regime while doing virtually nothing to hold them accountable. They&#8217;ve imposed some rather minor sanctions targeting specific officials, unless the United States has pushed them into broader sanctions.
We&#8217;ve had to do all the hard work, as per our usual arrangement.
So here&#8217;s the deal. If we&#8217;re going to do all the work and undertake all the sacrifice and spend the blood and treasure, then we ought to reap the benefit. 
There&#8217;s been a lot of talk about what the United States ought to do next with regard to Iran. The most obvious move, and one I&#8217;ve been advocating, is for the United States to seize Kharg Island. President Trump has been suggesting for a while that this may happen.
Nearly 90% of all Iranian oil passes through Kharg Island. The Iranians have already, in large part, shut the Strait of Hormuz. They&#8217;ve already upped the ante in terms of attacks on surrounding gas and oil facilities. So the United States doesn&#8217;t have tremendous downside here.
What&#8217;s Iran going to do, attack more oil facilities? We ought to seize control of the oil, and then we ought to let American companies keep pumping it, and then we ought to send it to its final destination, China. China would then know that we are in charge of the spigot; Iran&#8217;s terrorist government would be deprived of their monetary flow.
What about the Europeans?
If the price of oil rises, they can buy it from us, not the Iranians.
If they&#8217;re not going to join us as allies, they can pay our companies for the oil.

NATO Leaders Attend 2025 Summit In The Hague

Fake Allies And Backstabbers

Ben Shapiro

European Union

NATO

Strait of Hormuz

While taking questions from reporters on Thursday, President Donald Trump blindsided Japanese Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi with made a joke referencing the 1941 surprise attack initiated by the Empire of Japan on the American naval base at Pearl Harbor, Hawaii.
The question, from one of the reporters in the Oval Office, was about the current joint operation in Iran undertaken by the United States and Israel — specifically, why President Trump had not spoken with allies in Europe or Japan prior to initiating an attack against the Iranian regime.
WATCH:
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet">
Q: &#8220;Why didn&#8217;t you tell U.S. allies…about the war before attacking Iran?&#8221;
President Trump: &#8220;We wanted surprise. Who knows better about surprise than Japan? Why didn&#8217;t you tell me about Pearl Harbor?&#8221; <a href="https://t.co/esV9iyvMiV">pic.twitter.com/esV9iyvMiV</a>
— CSPAN (@cspan) <a href="https://twitter.com/cspan/status/2034667305318187239?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">March 19, 2026</a></blockquote>
<script async src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script>
&#8220;Japan and U.S. are very good friends,&#8221; the reporter began. &#8220;But one question: why didn&#8217;t you tell U.S. Allies in Europe and Asia, like Japan, about the war before attacking Iran? So we are very confused about — we, Japanese citizens —&#8221;
&#8220;Well, one thing, you don&#8217;t want to signal too much,&#8221; Trump replied, arguing that it was unwise to give away too much of the planning before taking military action. &#8220;You know, when we go in, we went in very hard, and we didn&#8217;t tell anybody about it because we wanted surprise. Who knows better about surprise than Japan? Why didn&#8217;t you tell me about Pearl Harbor? Okay? Right?&#8221;
Prime Minister Takaichi appeared to be slightly uncomfortable as several around the room began to laugh.
&#8220;He&#8217;s asking me — no, you believe in surprise I think much more so than us,&#8221; Trump continued, pivoting back to Iran. &#8220;But we had to surprise them and we did. And because of that surprise, we knocked out — the first two days, we probably knocked out 50% of what we — and much more than we anticipated.&#8221;
&#8220;So if I go and tell everybody about it, it&#8217;s no longer a surprise, right?&#8221; the president concluded.

President Trump Hosts Japan’s Prime Minister Takaichi At White House

Trump Defends Keeping Allies In The Dark With Unexpected Pearl Harbor Quip

Media

Military

Politics

Toyota CEO Akio Toyoda was smiling for photos and giving two thumbs up as he donned a red “Make America Great Again” hat and a Trump-Vance shirt during an American-themed NASCAR event in Japan over the weekend.
“I’m not here to argue whether tariffs are good or bad. Every national leader wants to protect their own industry,” Toyoda <a href="https://www.autonews.com/toyota/an-toyota-akio-toyoda-maga-nascar-trump-japan-tariff-1116/">said</a> ahead of the exhibition. “We are exploring ways to make tariffs a winner for everyone. The people we want most to be winners are our customers.”
Japan now has a roughly 15% baseline tariff on auto imports, down from 27.5% following September trade negotiations.
The America-themed celebration at Fuji Speedway featured top NASCAR drivers, fans waving American flags, and an appearance from U.S. Ambassador to Japan George Glass. The ambassador posted photos of himself at the event alongside the caption, “Start your engines! &#8230; Looking forward to celebrating the culture of motorsports again next year, as part of our [America250] festivities in Japan.” 
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet">
Toyota Chairman Akio Toyoda showed up to a NASCAR event on Sunday repping MAGA gear.
BASED 🔥🔥🔥🇺🇸 <a href="https://t.co/NnkbuJaNfk">pic.twitter.com/NnkbuJaNfk</a>
— Trump War Room (@TrumpWarRoom) <a href="https://twitter.com/TrumpWarRoom/status/1990855538045792277?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">November 18, 2025</a></blockquote>
<script async src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script>
The event came days before the carmaker announced on Tuesday a $912 million investment in its U.S. manufacturing operations, aimed at expanding hybrid production in Southern states.
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Per Motor Intelligence <a href="https://www.cnbc.com/2025/11/18/toyota-hybrid-plants.html">data</a>, Toyota currently has more than 51% market share of hybrid vehicles through the third quarter of this year.
“Customers are embracing Toyota’s hybrid vehicles, and our U.S. manufacturing teams are gearing up to meet that growing demand,” Kevin Voelkel, Toyota Motor North America senior vice president of manufacturing operations, <a href="https://pressroom.toyota.com/toyota-boosts-hybrid-production-with-912-million-investment-creating-252-new-u-s-manufacturing-jobs/">said</a>. “Toyota’s philosophy is to build where we sell, and by adding more American jobs and investing across our U.S. footprint, we continue to stay true to that philosophy.”
Toyota announced last week it will invest as much as $10 billion into the United States over the next five years, <a href="https://www.latimes.com/business/story/2025-11-14/toyota-confirms-up-to-10-billion-investment-in-u-s">confirming</a> what President Donald Trump had said in October after meeting with the company’s CEO.

Akio Toyoda

Toyota CEO Goes Full MAGA At NASCAR Event Then Drops $912M On U.S. Jobs

Toyota CEO Rocks MAGA Hat At NASCAR Event, Then Announces Nearly $1B Boost To U.S. Manufacturing

Business

Cars

Economy

MAGA

Tariffs

TOKYO — Long associated with American ruggedness, pickup trucks such as Ford&#8217;s top-selling F-150 have now become a symbol of international trade talks, showing how far countries such as Japan will go to win over U.S. President Donald Trump.
When Trump met Japan&#8217;s new prime minister and first female premier, Sanae Takaichi, in Tokyo on Tuesday, an F-150 was parked prominently outside the Akasaka Palace venue.
Burly U.S. pickup trucks are a rare sight in the Japanese capital, where the streets are narrow and turns can be tight.
But the placement of the F-150, which is not typically available for sale in Japan, sent a clear message about Tokyo&#8217;s willingness to buy more cars from its ally, an issue that has been a sticking point for Trump for decades.
Last week, Reuters reported that Takaichi&#8217;s government was working on a package to buy F-150 trucks, an idea originally floated by Trump, as well as soybeans and gas.
&#8220;Well, that&#8217;s great. She has good taste,&#8221; Trump told reporters on Air Force One, when asked about the report. &#8220;That’s a hot truck.&#8221;
In August, Trump said Japan was ready to purchase the &#8220;very beautiful&#8221; F-150.
It was not clear how many F-150s Japan planned to buy.
Japanese government sources have told Reuters the trucks would probably end up being used as snow plows, given their size.
Japan and Europe, Trump has often argued, refuse to accept U.S. cars even as Japanese and European automakers sell millions of their vehicles each year in the United States.
The F-150 won&#8217;t be the first American car brought in to Japan to help ease trade friction. Three decades ago, Toyota responded to U.S. pressure by selling a mid-sized General Motors car under its own brand in Japan.
The Toyota Cavalier was introduced with much fanfare, sold poorly, and quietly faded after a few years, said John Shook, a former Toyota manager and an auto industry veteran in both Japan and the United States.
A third of the 3.7 million new cars sold in Japan last year were mini or &#8220;kei&#8221; cars, tiny vehicles that are not produced by American automakers.
Foreign cars accounted for 6% of new car sales overall, with European brands among some of the top sellers, industry data showed, while Ford itself pulled out of Japan almost a decade ago.
Separately, Trump said Toyota would open auto plants in the United States to the tune of $10 billion.
A Toyota spokesperson was not immediately available to comment on Trump&#8217;s remarks.
(Reporting by Trevor Hunnicutt and David Dolan; Additional reporting by Maki Shiraki; Editing by Clarence Fernandez and Ros Russell)

A Ford F-150 and a Toyota pickup truck are parked outside of Akasaka Palace, in Tokyo

Trump’s ‘Hot Truck’ Becomes Symbol Of Japan Trade Talks

Ford Motor Co.

trade

Newly elected conservative Japanese Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi, the first woman to hold that position, vowed to increase her country&#8217;s defense and security commitments during a meeting with President Donald Trump on the USS George Washington in Japan on Tuesday.
Takaichi joined Trump on the massive U.S. aircraft carrier in front of around 6,000 U.S. service members as Trump continued his week-long Asia tour, The Wall Street Journal <a href="https://www.wsj.com/world/asia/trump-hails-golden-era-in-japan-relations-63888687?mod=hp_lead_pos5">reported</a>.
&#8220;As the two commanders-in-chief of Japan and the United States stand together once again, I have renewed my determination &#8230; to make the Indo-Pacific free and open so that it will serve as the foundation of peace and prosperity for the entire region,&#8221; Takaichi <a href="https://x.com/RapidResponse47/status/1983075074174238770">told</a> the crowd of U.S. military members. &#8220;Now, we are facing an unprecedented severe security environment. Peace cannot be preserved by words alone. It can be protected only when there is unwavering determination and action.&#8221;
Trump praised Takaichi, whom he called &#8220;a winner,&#8221; and said, “The cherished alliance between the United States and Japan is one of the most remarkable relationships in the entire world.&#8221;
&#8220;Born out of the ashes of a terrible war, our bond has grown over eight decades into the beautiful friendship that we have,&#8221; Trump added. &#8220;It&#8217;s the foundation of peace and security in the Pacific.&#8221;
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet" data-media-max-width="560">
&#8220;This woman is a winner!&#8221;<a href="https://twitter.com/POTUS?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@POTUS</a> welcomes Japanese Prime Minister <a href="https://twitter.com/takaichi_sanae?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@takaichi_sanae</a> on stage aboard the USS George Washington. <a href="https://t.co/rzOsyQNPd8">pic.twitter.com/rzOsyQNPd8</a>
— Rapid Response 47 (@RapidResponse47) <a href="https://twitter.com/RapidResponse47/status/1983073765803131230?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">October 28, 2025</a></blockquote>
<script async src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script>
Trump also <a href="https://www.foxnews.com/world/trump-says-missiles-japans-f-35s-arrive-this-week-during-visit-uss-george-washington">said</a> on Tuesday that he had just approved a &#8220;batch of missiles&#8221; for Japan&#8217;s F-35 fighter jets, which are set to arrive later this week. The president has been pushing U.S. allies worldwide to boost their defense spending as he seeks more favorable trade deals and security arrangements for the United States.
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Last week, during Takaichi&#8217;s inaugural address as prime minister, she vowed to ramp up Japan&#8217;s defense spending more quickly. Instead of increasing defense spending to 2% of the country&#8217;s gross domestic product by 2027, Takaichi said she wants to jump to 2% by the end of the upcoming fiscal year in March, The Wall Street Journal reported. Japan currently spends 1.4% of its GDP on defense.
Japan&#8217;s new leader made the security spending promises as the United States and its allies face the continued Chinese threat in the region. Trump is set to meet with Chinese communist leader Xi Jinping on Thursday in South Korea, where he hopes to nail down a trade deal.
The Trump administration is also seeking to secure rare earth mineral supply chains to counter China&#8217;s stranglehold on critical minerals. Trump and Takaichi <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/more-trump-trade-wins-u-s-and-japan-strike-rare-earth-pact-announce-strategic-investment-deal?topStoryPosition=undefined&amp;author=Zach+Jewell&amp;category=News&amp;elementPosition=1&amp;row=1&amp;rowHeadline=Top+Stories&amp;rowType=Top+Stories&amp;title=More+Trump+Trade+Wins%3A+U.S.+And+Japan+Strike+Rare+Earth+Pact%2C+Announce+Strategic+Investment+Deal">announced</a> on Tuesday that they had reached a rare earth deal, which establishes a mutual stockpiling arrangement and stipulates that the United States and Japan will cooperate with international partners to protect the supply chain.
Japan and the United States also released a list of proposed projects to boost Japanese investment in the U.S. economy by more than $500 billion. The proposed investments included projects in the energy and artificial intelligence sectors.

U.S. President Trump Visits USS George Washington In Japan

New Japanese Prime Minister Vows Stronger Defense As Trump Hails ‘Cherished Alliance’

Global Politics

Speaking aboard the USS George Washington at the Yokosuka Naval Base in Japan, President Donald J. Trump delivered a thunderous message on combating crime in American cities.
“We have cities that are troubled,” Trump declared, his tone equal parts steel and resolve. “And we’re sending in our National Guard — and if we need more than the National Guard, we’ll send more than the National Guard, because we’re gonna have safe cities. We’re not gonna have people killed in our cities. Whether people like that or not, that’s what we’re doing.”
In September, Chicago suffered one of the bloodiest Labor Day weekends in its recent history — nearly 60 shot, at least nine killed — under Democratic Mayor Brandon Johnson’s watch. For the thirteenth straight year, Chicago topped the nation in homicides, with 572 murders in 2024 alone. Yet, instead of seeking help, Illinois Democratic Governor J.B. Pritzker continued to defy federal offers of assistance. “Donald Trump is attempting to manufacture a crisis,” Pritzker had claimed, while insisting that “big cities have crime.”
But the Trump administration wasn’t buying it. “Despite pleas from residents, city council members, and even MSNBC hosts,” the White House stated, “Governor Pritzker is too blinded by Trump Derangement Syndrome to act in the best interest of his constituents.” Trump put it bluntly: “We’re going in. I didn’t say when we’re going in. This isn’t political — I have an obligation.”
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By early October, that obligation took form. The War Department, under Secretary Pete Hegseth, authorized 300 Illinois National Guard troops to protect federal agents and facilities under siege in Chicago. Pritzker immediately dubbed the move “Trump’s Invasion,” railing that “federalized members of the Illinois National Guard” were being deployed “against our wishes.” The administration responded that the troops would defend ICE agents and federal buildings under violent threat — a duty clearly allowed under 10 U.S.C. §12406, which authorizes the president to act when federal law cannot be executed by regular forces.
“Everybody knows Chicago is a hellhole right now,” Trump said. “We’re going to straighten it out.” Operation Midway Blitz followed — a sweep that netted hundreds of illegal immigrants with criminal backgrounds, including gang members and murderers. Meanwhile, the Texas National Guard began preparing to bolster the Illinois deployment.
Trump didn’t stop there. As riots erupted in Portland, Oregon, he authorized the deployment of 200 California and Oregon National Guard members, describing cities like Portland and Chicago as “burning.” When a federal judge blocked the order, Trump fired back, calling the decision “shameful.”
“I believe the politicians are under threat,” Trump said. “There’s no way someone can say things are wonderful in Chicago. We’re going to straighten it out. And I think Pritzker — he’s afraid for his life.”
Trump’s message from Japan was unmistakable: under his leadership, law and order will no longer be optional. “We’re gonna have safe cities,” he vowed. “Whether people like that or not.”
&nbsp;

Trump: ‘We’ll Send More Than The National Guard’ To Keep Cities Safe

American Cities

Crime

Executive

National Guard

U.S.

U.S. troops

The consequences of the government shutdown rear their ugly heads, a congressional hearing to examine the origins of political violence, and Trump continues his Asia tour as the Left melts down over his East Wing renovations.
It’s Tuesday, October 28, 2025, and this is the news you need to know to start your day. Today’s edition of the Morning Wire podcast can be heard below, and <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/episode/mrn-251028">the video version can be seen on The Daily Wire</a>:
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<h2 style="text-align: center;">Government Shutdown Repercussions</h2>
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Topline: The government shutdown is dragging on, and pressure is mounting on Democrats to end it.
About 13,000 air traffic controllers are set to miss their first paycheck on Tuesday, which is bound to make a bad situation significantly worse. Some reports say air traffic controllers are taking second jobs as DoorDash drivers to supplement their income.
Roughly 18,700 flights were delayed on Sunday. On Monday, more than 3,000 flights were delayed, and more than 100 were canceled. Airports have become a flash point of the shutdown. Air traffic controllers and TSA agents were some of the first employees to see their pay disrupted, and Americans are generally united in hating flight delays.
Uh-oh, Democrats: A couple of major airline pilot unions last week called for an end to the shutdown, and that turned out to be only a precursor of what was to come. Now, the largest union representing 800,000 federal workers, the American Federation of Government Employees, has issued a statement calling for the Senate to pass a continuing resolution to end the shutdown.
Union President Everett Kelley said it&#8217;s time for leaders to focus on solving problems for the American people rather than on who is going to get the blame for the shutdown. He is calling for back pay for every single employee who has been forced to stay home.
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AFGE is a Democratic stalwart. It pushed to stop the Trump administration from making federal workers return to the office, it endorsed Joe Biden for president, and just last week, it blamed Trump and congressional Republicans for keeping the government closed. But while this statement doesn’t lay the blame on one party in particular, the union calls for a clean CR, which Republicans have put forward over a dozen times and Democrats keep rejecting.
Oh SNAP: In addition to flight delays and organized labor turning against them, Democrats also have to contend with the fact that food stamps benefits will lapse starting on Friday.
The expiration of Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) benefits will impact 40 million people. House Majority Whip Tom Emmer said on Monday that not only is this affecting airports, but that some states, such as his own, will now have to be forced to cut off SNAP benefits—an example of SNAP becoming one of the big talking points this week.
Food stamps are not an explicitly partisan issue, and lawmakers from both parties will have to explain this disruption in benefits to their constituents. Democrats are working to shift the blame to Republicans. The California Department of Social Services is texting residents, blaming the imminent SNAP disruption on Trump and the GOP.
Republicans dismissed the attack, as California Democratic Governor Gavin Newsom is using taxpayer money to spread political propaganda. But each new disruption is likely going to hit Democrats harder than Republicans, increasing the likelihood that some members of Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer’s caucus break ranks in the coming days.
<h2 style="text-align: center;">Hearing On Politically Violent Attacks</h2>
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Topline: The assassination of Charlie Kirk has prompted a congressional hearing for Tuesday, organized by Sen. Eric Schmitt (R-MO), on &#8220;Politically Violent Attacks.” The hearing seeks to examine the origins of political violence and extremism, which have come mainly from the Left in recent years. 
Morning Wire spoke with Sen. Schmitt and Michael Knowles, host of “<a href="https://www.dailywire.com/show/the-michael-knowles-show">The Michael Knowles Show</a>” on The Daily Wire, about the nature of political violence in the United States today. (The following transcript has been lightly edited for clarity.)
Morning Wire: Senator, you’ve organized this hearing, and this issue is obviously a high priority. What are the goals of the proceedings today?
Schmitt: The assassination of Charlie Kirk brought left-wing political violence really front and center, and I think it needs to be exposed. This isn’t a one-off thing. This is sort of an ideology that’s taken hold now. When you have 25% of those who describe themselves as “very liberal” believe political violence is justified, over 55% of those on the left believe it&#8217;s at least somewhat justifiable to assassinate President Trump, there’s a problem. And I think if we’re ever going to get on the other side of this and get to healing – where we can say, free speech, yes, political violence, no – we have to expose the truth, which is that this is overwhelmingly coming from one side.
Morning Wire: Senator thanks for joining us. Among those testifying at the hearing today is Daily Wire host Michael Knowles. Michael, good to have you back on. You obviously were invited to this hearing for specific reasons – tell us about that, and what you plan to address.
Knowles: I was invited largely because I was the target of leftist violence on a few occasions, but of organized leftist violence, specifically two years ago. This was at the University of Pittsburgh. I was doing a debate on the topic of transgenderism, and there was a large demonstration. They burnt me in effigy, lit the street on fire, and then two Antifa operatives showed up and threw smoke bombs at the attendees and the police. And then threw a large explosive firework at the police and seriously injured one female police officer, gave her life-altering injuries that took her out of work for at least a year – and also injured other police officers as well. … Happily, there was one intrepid FBI agent in the crowd, and he had noticed the uptick in left-wing violence at these conservative speaker events. … It was only because he really pushed this up through the DOJ that any charges were brought at all. … So these are two people who are members of an anarchist cell, part of the Torch Antifa Network. The guy had set off TSA scanners with explosive material multiple times. It’s an illustrative example of violence because if you look up left-wing ideologically motivated violence in any of the databases that concern it or at the federal government level, you won&#8217;t find it. It won&#8217;t turn up. That just doesn&#8217;t exist, and this is true for a lot of examples of left-wing violence, perhaps most notably the BLM riots, which are just simply not classified as left-wing violence. … So we’re going to call attention to that fact, as well as to the fact that now even the honest liberals can not hold up the lie that the violence is coming from the right.
Morning Wire: What do you think the federal government’s role should be in addressing politically motivated violence — is there a line which they should not cross?
Knowles: I don’t think we’re at fear of over-policing left-wing terrorists, okay? I think we’re barely policing them at all. And so then the question becomes, well, what tools are at the federal government&#8217;s disposal? And there are plenty. You know, President Trump has said that he will classify Antifa as a domestic terror organization. Now, the government is more limited in its resources to go after domestic terrorists as opposed to foreign terrorists. However, we&#8217;ve done it before. The federal government has successfully dismantled the Ku Klux Klan, has successfully dismantled organized crime using all sorts of statutes; going after them for RICO, for conspiracy, for all manner of things all the way up to tax evasion, I suppose. President Trump putting this renewed focus on it is very important because the Left has dismissed this as a concern by lying and saying that the political violence is a right-wing phenomenon, and it has allowed this problem to fester so much so that we saw its tragic apotheosis in the murder of Charlie Kirk – and we cannot allow that to continue anymore.
<h2 style="text-align: center;">Trump Hunts For A Deal</h2>
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Topline: President Trump continues his swing through Asia as Democrat and media backlash builds following his White House renovation.
Japan: After signing a big peace deal Sunday between Thailand and Cambodia and rolling out new trade deals elsewhere, Trump headed to Japan, where he received royal treatment. Famous landmarks across Tokyo were lit up with red, white, and blue displays.
The Trump administration and Japan reached a deal on rare earth minerals on Tuesday and unveiled a list of projects included in a $550 billion investment proposal stemming from a July trade agreement.
The rare earth deal, which President Donald Trump signed alongside Japanese Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi, establishes a mutual stockpiling arrangement and stipulates that the United States and Japan will cooperate with international partners to protect the supply chain, Reuters <a href="https://www.reuters.com/world/asia-pacific/trump-takaichi-agree-rare-earth-critical-minerals-supply-2025-10-28/">reported</a>. Trump has been pushing to better secure the rare-earth supply chain and cut into China&#8217;s stranglehold over rare-earth minerals.
Along with the rare-earth deal, the United States and Japan released a list of proposed projects to boost Japanese investment in the U.S. economy. Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick <a href="https://x.com/RapidResponse47/status/1983119054983287061">said</a> at a press conference alongside Trump on Tuesday that the proposals &#8220;are driven by the Japanese strategic investment initiative, which was created by [Trump&#8217;s] tariff policy and by [Trump&#8217;s] historic trade agreement with Japan.&#8221;
The White House credited the threat of tariffs with pushing our trading partners to make deals favorable to the United States. Deals were announced with Cambodia, Thailand, and Vietnam on Sunday, and now Japan has been added to the list on Monday. But the world is still waiting to see what will come of this meeting with China on Thursday. 
China: Officials from both sides have continued to meet to hammer out the framework of a deal. The White House says it&#8217;s confident both sides will agree to dramatically lower tariffs and possibly strike a permanent solution to the battle over TikTok ownership.
Trump put it more bluntly: “I think we&#8217;re going to come away with a deal.”
While Trump’s optimism has not always preceded deals, investors seem to think this is good news. Gold, cryptocurrency, and oil prices all spiked on Monday as global markets rallied to all-time highs across Asia.
On Wall Street, the DOW, NASDAQ, and S&amp;P 500 all hit record highs on Monday. Leading the way were tech companies like Nvidia, which have been hobbled this year by massive tariffs on semiconductors. Stateside, shares of domestic mining companies fell, a sign that investors believe China is about to reopen the flow of rare earth minerals as part of a looming deal.
White House remodel: The East Wing of the White House has now been demolished to make way for a 90,000 square foot ballroom. The administration says it’s a matter of practicality and safety, noting that in the past, if a president wanted to hold a large event honoring foreign dignitaries, they were often forced to erect makeshift tents on the White House lawn.
Former presidents such as Teddy Roosevelt, William Howard Taft, FDR, Harry S. Truman, Richard Nixon, and Barack Obama added items to the White House, made renovations, or removed items. Though that has not stopped criticism from being leveled at Trump over his plans for a ballroom.
There are already some on the Left attempting to mount a legal challenge to block the project. A Virginia couple filed a motion in a D.C. federal court last week seeking a temporary restraining order against the demolition, arguing it violates the National Historic Preservation Act. The administration says it’s well within its authority to make renovations, the same way so many presidents have done before.

MRN_251028_V1

Morning Brief: Shutdown Fallout Mounts & Congress Probes Political Violence

Morning Brief: Shutdown Consequences Coming, Leftist Political Violence, And Trump's China Deal

Charlie Kirk

China

Democratic Party

Eric Schmitt

Government Shutdown

Michael Knowles

Morning Wire

Washington D.C.

The Trump administration and Japan reached a deal on rare earth minerals on Tuesday and unveiled a list of projects included in a $550 billion investment proposal stemming from a July trade agreement.
The rare earth deal, which President Donald Trump signed alongside Japanese Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi, establishes a mutual stockpiling arrangement and stipulates that the United States and Japan will cooperate with international partners to protect the supply chain, Reuters <a href="https://www.reuters.com/world/asia-pacific/trump-takaichi-agree-rare-earth-critical-minerals-supply-2025-10-28/">reported</a>. Trump has been pushing to better secure the rare-earth supply chain and cut into China&#8217;s stranglehold over rare-earth minerals.
Along with the rare-earth deal, the United States and Japan released a list of proposed projects to boost Japanese investment in the U.S. economy. Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick <a href="https://x.com/RapidResponse47/status/1983119054983287061">said</a> at a press conference alongside Trump on Tuesday that the proposals &#8220;are driven by the Japanese strategic investment initiative, which was created by [Trump&#8217;s] tariff policy and by [Trump&#8217;s] historic trade agreement with Japan.&#8221;
Lutnick added that the initial investment totals $490 billion, which he called the &#8220;launch phase,&#8221; Bloomberg <a href="https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2025-10-28/trump-hails-japan-alliance-offers-takaichi-anything-you-want">reported</a>. After the &#8220;launch phase,&#8221; more projects would then be considered for the total $550 billion project. The proposed Japanese investments were a key part of the U.S.-Japan trade deal agreed upon in July, when President Trump lowered tariffs on Japanese auto imports from 27.5% to 15%, and in exchange, Japan <a href="https://www.nytimes.com/2025/10/26/business/japan-investment-trump-tariffs.html">agreed</a> to invest $550 billion in the United States.
The two allies announced numerous investment projects spanning energy and critical minerals, as well as artificial intelligence development. Among the proposed projects is a plan to invest up to $100 billion for the construction of nuclear reactors and small modular reactors in the United States. That proposal would involve the American manufacturing company Westinghouse and include the &#8220;involvement of Japanese suppliers and operators, such as Mitsubishi, Heavy Industries, Toshiba Group, and IHI,&#8221; according to a Japanese government <a href="https://www.meti.go.jp/press/2025/10/20251028002/20251028002-a.pdf">handout</a>. Another $100 billion energy proposal would build more small modular reactors in the United States with some investment from Japanese companies.
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“These are great companies, many of them household names — that you would expect — that are going to build infrastructure and improve the national economic security of the United States,” said Lutnick.
President Trump also <a href="https://x.com/RapidResponse47/status/1983080708055900442">said</a> that Toyota planned to invest more than $10 billion in U.S. auto plants. During a speech to U.S. troops in Japan, Trump said, &#8220;I was just told by the prime minister that Toyota is going to be putting auto plants all over the United States to the tune of over $10 billion.&#8221;
&#8220;And that&#8217;s a lot to do with because we have all the AI plants, we have so many things happening in the United States,&#8221; Trump added. &#8220;And it&#8217;s because of November 5th election day, but it&#8217;s also because of tariffs.&#8221;
The Toyota investment was not mentioned in the government fact sheet released on Tuesday.
Other investment proposals mentioned included a $30 billion proposal for Mitsubishi Electric to supply generators, transmission, and distribution systems, as well as equipment for AI data centers. A $15 million proposal included Panasonic supplying &#8220;energy storage systems, and other electronics, to contribute to strengthening supply chains in the U.S.&#8221;
The major U.S.-Japan announcements on Tuesday come just two days before Trump is expected to meet with Chinese Communist Party leader Xi Jinping in South Korea, a meeting Trump hopes will lead to a trade deal.

President Trump Meets With Prime Minister Of Japan

More Trump Trade Wins: U.S. And Japan Strike Rare Earth Pact, Announce Strategic Investment Deal

Energy

Howard Lutnick

rare earth minerals

President Donald Trump met with Japanese Emperor Naruhito on Monday to kick off the Japan leg of the president’s Asian tour.
Trump is expected to meet with Japan’s chief political leader, Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi, on Tuesday. Later in the week, the president is expected to meet with Chinese President Xi Jinping in what both sides have signaled could be a detente in the ongoing trade war.
The emperor, the ceremonial head of Japan, greeted Trump on Monday. The president met with the emperor for about 30 minutes at the imperial palace.
Ahead of their meeting on Tuesday, Trump spoke to Takaichi over the phone from Air Force One.
&#8220;I hear great things about her. I think she&#8217;s going to be great. She was a great friend of Mr. Abe, who was a great man, Prime Minister Abe, and a great friend of mine. He was just a fantastic person,” Trump <a href="https://x.com/EricLDaugh/status/1982237080488218946">told</a> reporters on Air Force One about his upcoming meeting with the prime minister.
“He liked her a lot, she liked him a lot, so that’s a good sign. I look forward to meeting her,” said Trump.
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The meeting’s timing, ahead of Trump’s meeting with Xi, could be opportune for Takaichi, giving the new prime minister time to build rapport with Trump amid long-running tensions between Japan and China. The two leaders are expected to bond over their mutual respect for Abe, who was assassinated in 2022, providing a potential basis to ease trade tensions between Washington and Tokyo, as well.
Trump’s meeting with Xi, scheduled for Thursday, may result in a truce in the trade war that has erupted between Beijing and Washington since Trump took office in January. Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent said on Sunday that American and Chinese negotiators had reached a “substantial framework” on trade.
“The president had given me maximum leverage when he threatened 100% tariffs if the Chinese imposed their rare earth global export controls. So, I think we have averted that, so that the tariffs will be averted,” <a href="https://x.com/ThisWeekABC/status/1982441311094374609">said</a> Bessent during an interview on ABC.
“We also agreed on substantial agriculture purchases for U.S. farmers,” he added. “We agreed that the Chinese would begin to help us with the precursor chemicals for this terrible fentanyl epidemic that’s ravaging our country. So, I would say that it was a very good meeting overall.”

Donald Trump, Emperor Naruhito

Trump Receives Royal Treatment In Japan Ahead Of High-Stakes Xi Meeting

World

Xi Jinping

TOKYO — Conservative Sanae Takaichi was elected Japan&#8217;s first female prime minister on Tuesday, shattering a political glass ceiling for women and setting the country up for a decisive turn to the Right.
An acolyte of former Prime Minister Shinzo Abe and an admirer of Britain&#8217;s Margaret Thatcher, Takaichi is expected to return to Abe-style government stimulus as she attempts to jumpstart an economy struggling with slow growth and rising prices. Her victory marks a pivotal shift in a country where men hold overwhelming sway, yet she named just two women to her cabinet.
Takaichi is likely to make a sharp turn to the Right on immigration and defense, reflecting the broader rightward shift in global politics. In her first press conference, she promised to work tirelessly to restore Japan&#8217;s economic might, and deepen the relationship with the United States under President Donald Trump.
&#8220;I am determined to deliver results for the nation, to build a strong Japan and to never give up,&#8221; she said.
&#8220;I also plan to meet President Trump at an early date to elevate the Japan-U.S. relationship to new heights,&#8221; she said.
Her victory was secured after her Liberal Democratic Party, which has governed Japan for most of postwar history, agreed on Monday to form a coalition with the right-wing Japan Innovation Party, known as Ishin.
Together, the parties are two seats short of a majority in the lower house. For Takaichi to be successful, she will need to find ways to cooperate with opposition lawmakers, said Tadashi Mori, a professor of politics at Aichi Gakuin University.
“The two parties do not command a majority in either chamber and to ensure a stable government and gain control of key parliamentary committees, they will need to secure more than half the seats,” he said.
Takaichi named just two women to her cabinet: Fellow Abe disciple Satsuki Katayama becomes the country&#8217;s first female finance minister, while Kimi Onoda becomes economic security minister.
In her leadership campaign, she promised to boost the number of women in the cabinet to match socially progressive Nordic countries. But while the percentage of female ministers in Nordic governments ranges from Denmark&#8217;s 36% to Finland&#8217;s 61%, under Takaichi, women will make up only 16% of Japan&#8217;s cabinet, including her.
Takaichi takes over when Japanese politics appears more fractured than at almost any other time in recent memory, thanks in part to the rise of the smaller, hard-right Sanseito Party, which has siphoned voters away from the LDP.
Sanseito chief Sohei Kamiya said that both national politics and the LDP had been on a leftward drift since the assassination of former premier Abe in 2022. Takaichi, he told broadcaster NHK, could possibly reverse that.
&#8220;While we won’t hesitate to oppose her when necessary, we intend to maintain a friendly working relationship,” he said.
The LDP&#8217;s former coalition partner, the more moderate Komeito, broke up their 26-year-old alliance this month after the LDP chose the right-wing Takaichi as new leader.
Takaichi&#8217;s endorsement of Abe-style fiscal stimulus has prompted a so-called &#8220;Takaichi trade&#8221; in the stock market, sending the Nikkei share average to record highs, the most recent hit on Tuesday. However, it has also caused investor unease about the government&#8217;s ability to pay for increased spending when the debt load exceeds annual output. Both the yen and bond prices have weakened as a result.
Some analysts say Ishin, which has advocated for budget cuts, could restrain some of Takaichi&#8217;s spending ambitions.
Takaichi has said defense and national security would be core pillars of any administration she led.
A frequent visitor to the Yasukuni war shrine in Tokyo, which some Asian neighbours view as a symbol of wartime aggression, Takaichi has also called for a revision of Japan’s postwar pacifist constitution to recognize the existence of the nation’s military forces.
Rising political star Shinjiro Koizumi will serve as defense minister, while veteran lawmaker Toshimitsu Motegi will be foreign minister.
Takaichi was sworn in as Japan&#8217;s 104th prime minister on Tuesday evening, succeeding Shigeru Ishiba, who last month announced his resignation to take responsibility for election losses.
(Reporting by Mariko Katsumura, Tim Kelly, Kantaro Komiya, Yoshifumi Takemoto, Satoshi Sugiyama and Kentaro Okasaka; Writing by David Dolan; Editing by Kate Mayberry and Hugh Lawson)

Japanese lawmakers vote to elect the new prime minister, in Tokyo

In Historic Win, Conservative Sanae Takaichi Becomes Japan’s First Female Prime Minister

conservative

Sanae Takaichi

A magnitude 8.7 earthquake struck off Russia&#8217;s Far Eastern Kamchatka Peninsula on Wednesday, generating a tsunami of up to 4 metres (13 feet), damaging buildings and prompting evacuation warnings in the area and across most of Japan&#8217;s east coast, officials said.
&#8220;Today&#8217;s earthquake was serious and the strongest in decades of tremors,&#8221; Kamchatka Governor Vladimir Solodov said in a video posted on the Telegram messaging app, adding that a kindergarten was damaged.
A tsunami with a height of 3-4 metres (10-13 feet) was recorded in parts of Kamchatka, Sergei Lebedev, regional minister for emergency situations said, urging people to move away from the shoreline of the peninsula.
The U.S. Geological Survey said the earthquake was shallow at a depth of 19.3 km (12 miles), and was centred 126 km (80 miles) east-southeast of Petropavlovsk-Kamchatsky, a city of 165,000 along the coast of Avacha Bay. It revised the magnitude up from 8.0 earlier.
The Japan Weather Agency upgraded its warning, saying it expected tsunami waves of up to 3 metres (10 feet) to reach large coastal areas starting around 0100 GMT. Broadcast NHK said evacuation orders had been issued by the government for some areas.
Factory workers and residents in Japan&#8217;s northern Hokkaido evacuated to a hill overlooking the ocean, footage from broadcaster TBS showed.
&#8220;Please evacuate quickly. If you can move quickly to higher ground and away from the coast,&#8221; a newscaster on Japanese public broadcaster NHK said.
The U.S. Tsunami Warning System also issued a warning of &#8220;hazardous tsunami waves&#8221; within the next three hours along some coasts of Russia, Japan, Alaska and Hawaii. A tsunami watch was also in effect for the U.S. island territory of Guam and other islands of Micronesia.
Hawaii ordered evacuations from some coastal areas. &#8220;Take Action! Destructive tsunami waves expected,&#8221; the Honolulu Department of Emergency Management said on X.
An evacuation order for the small town of Severo-Kurilsk, south of the Kamchatka peninsula, was declared due to the tsunami threat, Sakhalin Governor Valery Limarenko said on Telegram.
Several people sought medical assistance following the quake, Oleg Melnikov, regional health minister told Russia’s TASS state news agency.
&#8220;Unfortunately, there are some people injured during the seismic event. Some were hurt while running outside, and one patient jumped out of a window. A woman was also injured inside the new airport terminal,” Melnikov said.
“All patients are currently in satisfactory condition, and no serious injuries have been reported so far.”
The Kamchatka branch of the Geophysical Service of the Russian Academy of Sciences said it was a very powerful earthquake.
&#8220;However, due to certain characteristics of the epicentre, the shaking intensity was not as high &#8230; as one might expect from such a magnitude,&#8221; it said in a video on Telegram.
“Aftershocks are currently ongoing &#8230; Their intensity will remain fairly high. However, stronger tremors are not expected in the near future. The situation is under control.”
Kamchatka and Russia&#8217;s Far East sit on the Pacific Ring of Fire, a geologically active region that is prone to major earthquakes and volcanic eruptions.
(Reporting by Anusha Shah Nilutpal Timsina and Mrinmay Dey in Bengaluru, Lidia Kelly in Melbourne and Satoshi Sugiyama in Tokyo; Writing by Lincoln Feast; Editing by Stephen Coates)

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