Once again, all the talk is about peace. President Trump is working to bring peace to the Middle East. Our main story looks at history’s most famous failed peacemaker. Contrary to the way he’s seen today, Neville Chamberlain was a hard-nosed businessman (who was also a big fan of tariffs—another tie-in with today’s news). The way he allowed himself to be used by Adolf Hitler is a powerful warning to President Trump as he deals with evil regimes around the world.

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Peace, peace—no peace? Yesterday’s meeting with United States President Donald Trump seems to have gone far better for Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu than most expected. Trump was widely expected to pressure Netanyahu to accept a ceasefire deal in Gaza. Most of the meeting’s contents have not been made public yet, but it looks like no such deal was made. Instead, the big news of the meeting comes from an unexpected announcement Netanyahu made at a dinner that was open to the press: “I want to present to you the letter I sent to the Nobel prize. It’s nominating you for the peace prize, which is well deserved and you should get it.”

Reaching over the table for the letter, Trump responded: “Wow. Thank you very much. This I didn’t know. Wow. Thank you very much. Coming from you in particular, this is very meaningful, Bibi.”

The letter reads:

President Trump has demonstrated steadfast and exceptional dedication to promoting peace, security and stability around the world. In the Middle East, his efforts have brought about dramatic change and created new opportunities to expand the circle of peace and normalization.

Foremost among these achievements was President Trump’s pivotal role in facilitating the Abraham Accords. These groundbreaking agreements established formal diplomatic relations between Israel and several Arab nations—including the United Arab Emirates, Bahrain and Morocco. These breakthroughs reshaped the Middle East and marked a historic advance toward peace, security and regional stability. President Trump’s vision and bold leadership promoted innovative diplomacy defined not by conflict and extremism but by cooperation, dialogue and shared prosperity.

Netanyahu made no mention to President Trump’s efforts to get a ceasefire in Gaza, conflict over Iran’s nuclear program or the failed mediation between Russia and Ukraine.

It looks like Netanyahu proverbially dodged a bullet by flattering the president. But as the Gaza War continues and President Trump becomes increasingly impatient, the issue of forcing a ceasefire may come up again. To learn more about what the stakes are, listen to yesterday’s Trumpet Daily, hosted by Trumpet executive editor Stephen Flurry.

President Trump announced tariffs broadly similar to those he announced in April in letters he sent to nations yesterday. The message is that President Trump is not backing away from his tariffs—but he will delay things to allow for negotiations. Tariffs have been pushed back to August 1. When asked how firm that deadline was, Trump replied, “I would say firm, but not 100 percent firm.”

Most countries that received tariff letters were in East Asia.

• Japan faces tariffs of 25 percent (in April they were told 24 percent).
• South Korea, 25 percent (the same as in April)
• South Africa, 30 percent (the same as in April)
• Indonesia, 32 percent (the same as in April)

White House Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt said more letters would follow.

In the short run, these tariffs seem set to bring in much needed revenue to offset some of the spending in the One Big, Beautiful Bill. In the long run, watch for nations to use trade wars to bring down the United States.

Germany plans new military service and huge tank order: According to a draft bill obtained by Spiegel, compulsory military service in Germany could begin in 2027 if an insufficient number of volunteers come forward and security conditions require it. The 50-page document states that the Bundestag reserves the right to decide if the defense policy situation “requires a short-term increase in the armed forces that cannot be achieved on a voluntary basis.”

If the draft finds approval within the cabinet, the Bundestag could pass the bill in time for the new military service to be implemented at the beginning of 2026. Initially, all young people born after Dec. 31, 2007, will be asked to complete a questionnaire gauging their willingness and eligibility for military service. According to Bundeswehr estimates, around 300,000 young men will fall under the new obligation annually. The government is hopeful that the questionnaire and additional incentives will draw more volunteers.

This in turn will give the government one year to assess if compulsory military service is necessary, which could be enforced starting in 2027.

In the meantime, Germany is considering procuring up to 2,500 armored fighting vehicles and 1,000 battle tanks, according to sources cited by Bloomberg on July 4. The order is intended to equip seven combat brigades upon NATO’s request for Germany to contribute to the alliance’s forces within the next decade. According to Reuters, the units will each have 5,000 troops. For this and other reasons, German Defense Minister Boris Pistorius believes that the Bundeswehr will need an additional 60,000 active soldiers.

Germany is Europe’s most populous country and has its largest economy and largest military budget. It also has a history of starting wars. Trumpet editor in chief Gerald Flurry puts “Germany’s Astonishing Military Rise” in its proper historic and prophetic perspective.

Norman Tebbit, a key supporter of British Prime Minister Margaret Thatcher, died last night at 94 years of age. He was a dogged fighter for free market reforms and helped drag Britain out of its dangerous experiment with socialism in the 1970s.

A former RAF and airline pilot, Lord Tebbit entered Parliament in 1970. He served as a junior trade minister, employment secretary, trade and industry secretary, and then Conservative Party chairman, all under Baroness Thatcher. His plainspokenness and willingness to stand up to what he believed meant he was often portrayed as “Nasty Norman.” But as the Telegraph wrote: “Tebbit spoke often of his strong moral code, and despite his caustic tone and apparent harshness he was a compassionate, unselfish man.” He was made a life peer in 1992 and spoke out against the European Union, immigration and homosexuality in the House of Lords.

In 1984, he was almost killed after the ira bombed the Grand Hotel in Brighton during the Conservative Party Conference. His wife was left permanently injured, and eventually he took a step back from politics to look after her. The bombing is one of the great “what ifs” of modern British history. Without it, Lord Tebbit could well have been a far better successor to Baroness Thatcher than John Major was. With his leadership, Britain may never have signed the Maastricht Treaty, drawn closer to Europe, become addicted to big government and welfare during the decade of rule by Tony Blair, or experienced mass migration.

“He had been an instinctive Thatcherite long before the term was invented,” wrote Simon Heffer. “He saw socialism as a sort of disease. … He was precisely the sort who would cross the road to have a fight, but only in a good cause. As part of a political class who minded their language and spoke with caution, he was a glorious exception.”

In Isaiah 3, God says that He takes away “The mighty man, and the man of war, the judge, and the prophet, and the prudent, and the ancient, The captain of fifty, and the honourable man, and the counsellor, and the cunning artificer, and the eloquent orator.” They are left with “children” as their “princes, and babes shall rule over them.”

I can’t help but wonder if Lord Tebbit is one of those mighty, honorable and eloquent leaders taken out of the way.

IN OTHER NEWS

German President Frank-Walter Steinmeier was guest of honor for Lithuania’s national holiday celebrations over the weekend, underscoring the close relations between the two as Lithuania hosts Germany’s first permanent foreign military base.

Russia’s main election monitor, Golos, will close, it announced today, after its cochair Grigory Melkonyants was sentenced to five years in a penal colony. “Justice, alas, does not always win—it must be fought for,” Golos said in a statement. “And there is always the risk of losing. This is how it turned out this time. Goodbye.” This is the latest proof of the death of democracy in Russia.

Tensions are rising in Europe as Polish border guards begin patrolling their border with Germany and Lithuania. European travel is meant to be border free, but that is unraveling. Meanwhile, Germany, France and Spain are falling out over their plans to jointly develop a next generation fighter jet. France is absurdly demanding that it control 80 percent of the project. It’s a reminder that though the Bible prophesies of a European superstate, it indicates a crisis will be required to bring it about—and it will never be completely free of these kinds of national squabbles.