Qatar informed the White House it will attend the conference in Bahrain on June 25 that will launch the economic part of the Trump administration's Israeli-Palestinian peace plan, according to U.S. officials.
Why it matters: For the last 2 years Qatar has been under a blockade by Saudi Arabia, the United Arab Emirates and Bahrain. The fact that the Qataris will attend the conference shows the U.S. managed to get a green light from the Saudis. This is a major achievement for the White House peace team led by Trump's senior adviser and son-in-law Jared Kushner, who is trying to get as many Arab countries to attend the conference, regardless of the Palestinians' decision to boycott.
Catch up quick: Giuliani would not confirm the details of the meeting, but former diplomat Andrii Telizhenko has claimed that the Democratic National Committee worked with Ukraine in 2016 to find incriminating information about Paul Manafort, Trump's former campaign chair manager. The DNC has denied those claims, per the Post.
The European Council announced last week a new framework to punish perpetrators of cyber crimes, in response to a growing number of politically motivated attacks against EU member states and institutions, non–EU countries and international organizations.
Why it matters: The EU has condemned malicious behavior in cyberspace before, but this is the first time it has instituted a policy to respond to malign behavior, an important milestone given the threats posed by hackers from Russia, China and elsewhere.
Secretary of State Mike Pompeo confirmed to lawmakers on Friday that President Trump will invoke an emergency provision allowing him to bypass Congress to sell nearly $8 billion worth of weapons that would benefit Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates, reports the Washington Post.
Why it matters: The "rare" move to declare an emergency in an effort to push through 22 arms deals is troubling to both Republican and Democratic lawmakers who are concerned that the White House is tipping the system of checks and balances, per the Post. Some fear that selling weapons to Gulf nations could fan the flames of tension between the U.S. and Iran, per the New York Times.
The White House told Congress on Friday that it plans to send an additional 1,500 troops to the Middle East amid tensions with Iran, Bloomberg reports.
Where it stands: The purpose of deploying additional troops is to "enhance protection of forces already in the region that are dedicated to missile defense, freedom of navigation in Persian Gulf waters and other objectives," according to a Pentagon notice to congressional defense committees obtained by Bloomberg.
U.K. Prime Minister Theresa May announced that she will resign as prime minister Friday, meaning a country that was already adrift amid the current Brexit crisis now has to replace its leader as well.
The big picture: May had presented a last-ditch effort to get her Brexit deal across the line, offering up the possibility of a second referendum. That olive branch set off a schism within her own Cabinet, punctuated by the resignation of Andrea Leadsom, the leader of the House of Commons, as ministers signaled throughout the week that the prime minister's political situation was deteriorating.
