In a joint statement, the defense ministers of Lithuania, Poland, Latvia and Estonia have announced their collective recommendation that their respective nations withdraw from the Anti-personnel Mine Ban Convention (Ottawa Convention). Citing the “deteriorated” security situation in Eastern Europe, the joint statement voices the defense ministers’ desire to field capabilities that give their respective forces the ability to respond to and defend against threats.

Note: This statement does not announce their withdrawal from the Ottawa Convention and instead communicates their desire to do so.

U.S. President Donald J. Trump is expected to have a phone call with Russian President Vladimir Putin from 4 to 6 p.m. Moscow time (9 to 11 a.m. Eastern Time), according to the Kremlin’s spokesperson Dmitry Peskov. President Putin is not expected to make a statement after the call.
While President Trump has said that “many elements” of a proposed ceasefire plan have been agreed on, no agreement has been fully agreed upon and implemented yet. The call is expected to push this process forward.

Channels in Gaza are reporting now that Abu Hamza, the Spokesman for the Palestinian Islamic Jihad (PIJ), was killed alongside members of his family in one of the recent waves of airstrikes by the Israeli Air Force.

Israeli Minister of Defense Israel Katz this morning at the Headquarters of the IDF, “If the Hamas murderers do not release all our hostages, our blows will only get worse.”

Footage showing strikes earlier today by the Israeli Air Force, on a pair of artillery pieces from the previous Assad Regime near Khan Arnabah in Southwestern Syria. The howitzers are said to have posed a threat to the State of Israel.

According to a release from U.S. Central Command (CENTCOM) the Houthis are now seizing food stock from a World Food Program (WFP) warehouse in Saada, Yemen. The seizure of goods from this warehouse, which contains over 5,700,000 pounds of aid intended for Yemeni civilians, is the latest in a string of Houthi actions against the WFP and wider UN missions across areas controlled by the group. The Houthis have targeted and diverted WFP aid in the past, and have shown no qualms with illegally detaining WFP and other UN aid workers.

Houthi Foreign Minister Jamal Amer told Reuters during an interview on Monday, that they will not “dial down” attacks against Israeli shipping in the Red Sea in response to appeals from allies like Iran, adding that they are now at war with the United States and that “escalation is likely.” Amer further stated, “(The U.S.) is threatening Iran and hitting Yemen. Now all scenarios are possible. We will do what they will do to us. If they are hitting us from Truman, we will retaliate by hitting Truman,” before also threatening the Gulf States if they allow their bases to be used by the U.S. for strikes against Yemen.

The Qatari Ministry of Foreign Affairs has released a statement condemning last night’s resumption of combat operations against the Gaza Strip by Israel.

The White House states that U.S. President Donald J. Trump and Russian President Vladimir Putin have been speaking over the phone now for an hour, beginning at 10:00am EST.

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu will reportedly address the nation tonight at 8:00pm local time, from the Defense Headquarters at the Kirya in Tel-Aviv.

The Palestinian Islamic Jihad (PIJ) has now confirmed the death of its Spokesman, Naji Abu Saif, also known by the alias of Abu Hamza, who was killed in one of the strikes against the Gaza Strip this morning by the Israeli Air Force.

The phone call between U.S. President Donald J. Trump and Russian President Vladimir Putin has ended after over two hours, with President Trump expected to issue a statement on their conversation soon.

A Mi-28N “Havoc” Two-Seat Anti-Armor Attack Helicopter with the Russian Aerospace Forces crashed earlier today in the Leningrad Oblast of Northwestern Russia, resulting in the death of both pilots. Since the beginning of Russia’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine in 2022, the Russian Air Force is visually confirmed to have lost at least 13 of its roughly 120 Mi-28s.

Red Alerts now across Southern Israel, following the reported launch of a ballistic missile by the Houthis in Yemen.

A readout from the White House detailing the call between U.S. President Donald J. Trump and Russian President Vladimir Putin is expected imminently. According to Russian state media outlets, the call went “very well”.

After sirens were triggered in Southern Israel due to a missile launch from Yemen, the Israel Defense Force (IDF) has now said that one missile from Yemen was intercepted outside of Israeli territory.

Chief Justice of the U.S. Supreme Court, John G. Roberts has issued a rare statement rebuking calls recently from President Donald J. Trump and his allies to impeach federal judges who have ruled against the Trump Administration, most recently District Judge James E. Boasberg who attempted to prevent the Administration from transferring roughly 200 criminal illegal migrants to prisons in El Salvador. “For more than two centuries, it has been established that impeachment is not an appropriate response to disagreement concerning a judicial decision. The normal appellate review process exists for that purpose,” Roberts said in his statement, adding “We do not have Obama judges or Trump judges, Bush judges or Clinton judges. What we have is an extraordinary group of dedicated judges doing their level best to do equal right to those appearing before them. That independent judiciary is something we should all be thankful for.”

Russian state-owned media has now provided some details from the call between the U.S. and Russian presidents. Details below:
- A 175 for 175 prisoner swap is expected to take place tomorrow March 19, 2025 between Ukraine and Russia.
- The two leaders also talked about the ongoing conflict in the Middle East.
- President Putin at least tacitly agreed to President Trump’s proposal for a 30-day halt on Russian strikes against Ukrainian energy infrastructure.
- Increased Russo-American bilateral cooperation. Pledged to create dedicated working groups to facilitate negotiations.
- Come to an agreement on the safety of shipping in the Black Sea. (It should be noted that Russia has been the primary threat to commercial shipping in the Black Sea for the entire conflict)
- A “complete cessation” of military aid to Ukraine was stressed by Russia’s top decision-maker.

Note: This is not from the expected White House readout bug Russian state-owned media citing Russian officials. It may differ from the White House readout’s characterization of the call.