Trump Says Iran Offered Major Energy Concession Amid Ongoing Negotiations 
Trump Votes by Mail Despite Calling It "Cheating" as Democrat Wins Mar-a-Lago District 
Cuba Receives Humanitarian Aid Convoy Amid U.S. Sanctions 
WTO Reform Talks Begin in Cameroon Amid Global Trade Tensions 
G7 Foreign Ministers Gather in France Amid Global Tensions and U.S. Policy Uncertainty 
Israel Eyes Litani River as New Border Amid Escalating Lebanon Offensive 
Jay Bhattacharya to Continue Leading CDC as White House Searches for Permanent Director 
Russia-Iran Military Alliance Deepens With Drone Shipments Amid Middle East Tensions 
US-Iran Ceasefire Talks Underway: What You Need to Know 
Trump Administration Settles Lawsuit Barring Federal Agencies from Pressuring Social Media Censorship 
Pakistan's Diplomatic Rise: Mediating U.S.-Iran Peace Talks 
Russia Strikes Kharkiv and Izmail as Cross-Border Drone War Escalates 
Trump Administration Opens Two New Investigations Into Harvard Over Discrimination and Antisemitism 
US Accelerates Taiwan Arms Deliveries Amid Rising China Threat 
FEMA Reinstates $1 Billion Disaster Prevention Grant Program After Court Order 
Trump Seeks Quick End to U.S.-Iran Conflict Amid Ongoing Middle East Tensions 
Taiwan Arms Deal on Track Despite U.S.-China Summit Uncertainty 
The West, led by the United States, has sought to provide Ukraine with military assistance as it imposes sanctions on Russia in response to its invasion. The European Union agreed this week to provide an additional 500 million euros in military assistance to Kyiv.
The foreign ministers of the European Union countries agreed Monday to provide an additional 500 million euros or $504 million in military aid to Ukraine, bringing its overall support to Kyiv to 2.5 billion euros.
The funds are expected to help the bloc jointly buy equipment and supplies for Ukraine’s military, including lethal weapons, which the group said should only be used for defensive purposes.
“Today at the EU foreign ministers meeting, a political agreement was reached on the fifth tranche of military assistance to Ukraine,” said Swedish foreign minister Ann Linde in a statement.
To note, European Union rules keep the bloc from using its seven-year budget to finance military operations, but the European Peace Facility, which has a limit of five billion euros, is off-budget and can be used to provide military assistance. The bloc approved the first tranche of aid shortly after Russia invaded Ukraine back in February.
The EU’s foreign policy chief Josep Borrell told a news conference that the war is likely going to continue. Borrell sought to show Ukraine that the bloc was not going to give up and that he expected the EU envoys to approve of an EU import ban on Russian gold.
“I’m sure Putin is counting on the democratic fatigue…He believes that democracies are weak. Look, no. The European societies cannot afford fatigue,” said Borrell.
Previously, officials told Reuters that the bloc and the Association of Southeast Asian Nations would be having their first full-fledged summit this year. The summit indicates the desire for the two blocs to forge stronger ties over concerns and security threats posed by China and Russia.
The summit will be held in Brussels on December 14 but has yet to be publicly announced, according to one EU official. This marks the first full gathering of leaders from both blocs, as previous meetings were only done between the leaders who are currently holding the temporary presidency of the groupings.
