Driving the news: The International Committee of the Red Cross said in a statement that it had formally requested access to the prison in Olenivka, a settlement in the separatist-controlled Donetsk province.
China announced Saturday it would conduct military exercises off the coast opposite Taiwan amid rising concern that Beijing may invade the self-governing island sooner than expected, per the Associated Press.
Driving the news: The announcement comes as Speaker of the House Nancy Pelosi is poised to visit Taiwan. Chinese President Xi Jinping earlier this week warned President Biden not to "play with fire" over the democratic island.
Spanish Prime Minister Pedro Sánchez on Friday urged public officials and private sector workers to dress more casually to stay cooler after a deadly heat wave hit the country earlier this month, Reuters reports.
Why it matters:More than 2,000 people died from heat-related causes in Spain and Portugal in roughly a week after a deadly heat wave swept through Europe over several weeks.
Driving the news: "We had a frank and direct conversation," Blinken said Friday of the discussion. "I pressed the Kremlin to accept the substantial proposal that we put forth on the release of Paul Whelan and Brittney Griner."
The Department of Justice on Friday unveiled an indictment against a Russian national who allegedly orchestrated a years-long foreign malign influence campaign within the U.S. on behalf of the Russian government and in conjunction with the Russian Federal Security Service (FSB).
Why it matters: The Justice Department said Aleksandr Viktorovich Ionov, a resident of Moscow, and three FSB officials used various political groups in the United States to "sow discord, spread pro-Kremlin propaganda and interfere in elections" within the U.S. between December 2014 and March 2022.
A bipartisan House bill introduced Friday would require the State Department to hire more people with China-related expertise.
The big picture: The draft legislation calls on the U.S. government to "further invest in relevant linguistic, cultural, and regional expertise to effectively engage in strategic competition with the People’s Republic of China."
Russia and Ukraine accused each other on Friday of conducting a missile strike that reportedly killed dozens of Ukrainian prisoners of war, AP reports.
Driving the news: Russia accused Ukraine's military of launching an attack on a prison in Olenivka, a settlement in the Donetsk province controlled by separatists, where Ukrainian prisoners of war were being held.
TAIPEI, Taiwan — The timeline for a potential Chinese attempt to take Taiwan by force seems to be getting shorter.
Driving the news: Chinese President Xi Jinping warned President Biden not to "play with fire" over Taiwan on Thursday, according to the Chinese readout of a call between the two leaders.
