Morning Brief: US Army Black Hawk Helicopter Crashes in Washington, Trump to Talk With Xi on TikTok Deal, MI6 Launches Dark Web Portal

· Guy D. McCardle

President Trump to talk with China's Xi Jinping on TikTok deal and trade. (Wikimedia Commons)

It’s Friday, September 19, 2025 — a dramatic night near Joint Base Lewis-McChord after a US Army Black Hawk crashed, sparking a wildfire as rescue crews race to the scene. Gun rights groups fight to free a jailed Air Force veteran in Massachusetts, and a former Navy sailor is sentenced for plotting a terror attack on a US naval base. Trump preps a call with Xi to seal a TikTok deal and ease trade tensions, while France expels Malian diplomats in a deepening rift. MI6 opens a dark web portal to recruit spies and warns that Putin isn’t seeking peace. Poland finds missile debris from its drone shootdowns, Kyiv repairs damage from falling fragments, and AP reveals Vietnam secretly pays Russia for arms despite sanctions.

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US Army Black Hawk Helicopter Crashes in Washington During Training

A US Army MH-60 Black Hawk helicopter with four service members aboard crashed near Joint Base Lewis-McChord in Washington state during a routine training mission, the Army said. Their conditions have not been released, and the cause is under investigation.

The soldiers are from the 160th Special Operations Aviation Regiment. The crash, which occurred Wednesday night near Summit Lake west of Olympia, sparked a wildfire that grew to about 1 acre by Thursday morning.

Search and rescue operations are ongoing, involving military, law enforcement, and firefighting agencies.

 

Gun Rights Groups Urge Court to Free Veteran Jailed on Massachusetts Gun Charges

Gun rights advocates are appealing to Massachusetts’ Supreme Judicial Court to release Air Force veteran Kyle Culotta, who has been jailed without bail since June on gun possession charges.

Police arrested Culotta during a traffic stop in Gardner, finding multiple firearms and ammunition that he did not have a Massachusetts license to carry.

Judges ruled he posed a danger, but his attorney argues he had no intent to harm and was moving to the state with lawfully owned property.

Advocates say his detention makes him a “political prisoner” under the state’s new 2024 gun law, which they are seeking to overturn through a 2026 ballot initiative.

 

Ex-Navy Sailor Gets 12 Years for Plotting Terror Attack at Illinois Naval Base

A federal judge sentenced former US Navy sailor Xuanyu “Harry” Pang to 12 years in prison for plotting a terrorist attack at Naval Station Great Lakes in Illinois and seeking to help Iran smuggle radioactive material into the US.

Pang, a 39-year-old naturalized US citizen from China, pleaded guilty to conspiring to destroy national defense premises.

Prosecutors said Pang scouted targets, took surveillance photos at the base, and offered uniforms and a detonator phone to an undercover Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) agent posing as an Iranian operative. He also discussed attacking Chicago landmarks for “max damage.”

The judge called Pang’s actions a betrayal of his oath, while prosecutors described him as calculating and motivated by money.

Pang’s defense argued his crimes stemmed from drug use and a mental health crisis, but the court ruled the seriousness of his actions warranted a lengthy sentence.

 

US and Israel Accuse UN Staff of Bias as Workers Protest Gaza Deaths

The United States and Israel sent letters to top United Nations officials accusing UN staff of breaching neutrality over the Gaza war, as hundreds of UN workers held a protest in Geneva mourning colleagues killed in the conflict.

Demonstrators placed 370 white roses to honor the 373 UN staff among 543 aid workers killed in Gaza since October 2023.

Israel’s UN ambassador called the event political and urged disciplinary action, while US officials also complained about a recent UN staff meeting with an expert critical of Israel.

UN management has reminded staff to stay impartial, citing rules against political activity, while workers said the protest aimed to honor fallen colleagues, not take sides.

 

Trump to Talk With Xi on TikTok Deal and Trade Amid Ongoing Tariff Dispute

US President Donald Trump is set to speak with Chinese leader Xi Jinping on Friday to finalize a deal allowing TikTok to keep operating in the US and to discuss easing trade tensions.

The call comes amid Trump’s second-term trade war, which has seen steep tariffs and falling US farm exports to China. A framework agreement on TikTok’s ownership was reached this week, and Trump said both sides are “very close” to deals.

US officials want TikTok’s algorithm and user data fully under US control to address security concerns.

The call could also set the stage for an in-person summit to resolve broader disputes on tariffs, export controls, and stalled Chinese purchases of US goods.

 

France Expels Malian Diplomats, Halts Counter-Terrorism Cooperation After Envoy’s Arrest

France suspended counter-terrorism cooperation with Mali and ordered two Malian diplomats to leave after Malian authorities arrested a French embassy employee in Bamako on suspicion of spying.

Paris called the accusations of destabilization “unjustified” and said the envoy should be released under diplomatic immunity.

Mali had earlier expelled five French embassy staff who have since left the country.

France warned of further measures if the detained employee is not freed.

Relations have soured as Mali’s junta, in power since 2021, distances itself from France and aligns more closely with Russia amid ongoing conflict with jihadist groups.

 

MI6 Launches Dark Web Portal to Recruit New Spies

Britain’s MI6 intelligence agency is launching a secure dark web platform called “Silent Courier” to recruit new informants and spies, including in Russia, the Foreign Office said.

The portal will allow people worldwide with sensitive information on terrorism or hostile intelligence activity to contact the UK securely and anonymously. It goes live Friday, with access instructions on MI6’s YouTube channel.

Officials said the move aims to strengthen UK defenses against global threats, following a similar outreach effort by the Central Intelligence Agency in 2023.

 

MI6 Chief Says Putin Has No Interest in Peace Talks on Ukraine

Outgoing MI6 chief Richard Moore said there is “absolutely no evidence” Russian President Vladimir Putin wants to negotiate peace in Ukraine, accusing him of trying to impose his will and lying about Russia’s prospects.

Speaking in Istanbul, Moore said Putin underestimated Ukraine’s resistance and that the war has strengthened Ukraine’s national identity while accelerating its shift toward the West. He warned Putin is sacrificing Russia’s future for his personal legacy.

Moore, who leaves MI6 at the end of September, made the remarks as the agency launched a dark web platform to recruit new informants, including from inside Russia.

 

Poland Finds Suspected Missile Debris After Shooting Down Russian Drones

Polish military police said they found suspected missile fragments in the eastern Lublin region, possibly from an interceptor used to down a drone, and will conduct forensic inspections.

The discovery comes a week after Poland, supported by NATO jets, shot down Russian drones that entered its airspace during strikes on Ukraine.

Russia denied targeting Poland.

 

Russian Drone Debris Damages Trolley Bus Lines in Kyiv

Fragments from a downed Russian drone damaged trolley bus lines in Kyiv’s central Shevchenkivsky district early Friday, city military chief Tymur Tkachenko said.

Debris fell in several locations, but no injuries were reported.

Two air raid alerts sounded around midnight, and Mayor Vitali Klitschko said fragments also fell in another district.

 

Vietnam Used Oil Profits to Secretly Pay Russia for Arms, Bypassing Sanctions

Internal Vietnamese documents reportedly obtained by the Associated Press show Vietnam and Russia set up a covert payment system to fund arms deals while evading US and Western sanctions.

Under the scheme, Vietnam buys Russian military equipment on credit and repays it with profits from their Rusvietpetro oil joint venture in Siberia. Extra profits flow to Russian firm Zarubezhneft, which then moves an equivalent amount to Vietnam’s state oil company domestically, avoiding international banking networks like SWIFT.

The arrangement was finalized in 2024 despite earlier leaks and US warnings that such deals could trigger sanctions.

It underscores Vietnam’s ongoing reliance on Russian defense supplies even as it deepens ties with Washington to counter China, raising risks for Hanoi as US and European Union sanctions pressure on Moscow intensifies.

 

Sources: News Agencies