U.S. announces $345 million military aid package for Taiwan

The U.S. on Friday announced $345 million in military aid for Taiwan, in what is the Biden administration’s first major package drawing on America’s own stockpiles to help Taiwan counter China. The White House’s announcement said the package would include defense, education and training for the Taiwanese. Washington will send man-portable المزيد

China helps Russia evade sanctions, likely supplies Moscow with tech used in Ukraine, U.S. intelligence report says

China is providing crucial support for Russia’s war effort in Ukraine by helping the Kremlin evade Western sanctions and is likely supplying Moscow with key technology, according to a new U.S intelligence report. China has dramatically expanded its purchase of Russian oil, gas and other energy exports since Moscow invaded المزيد

Army in Niger backs coup as U.S. forces in the country assess situation

NIAMEY, Niger — The army in the west African nation of Niger said Thursday it would offer no resistance to the forces that seized power in an armed coup this week. Meanwhile, U.S. forces in Niger were on restricted movements while they assess the situation, according to two U.S. defense المزيد

Bipartisan Senate bill aims to bolster drug supply chain by prioritizing U.S. manufacturing

WASHINGTON — A bipartisan group of senators aims to strengthen the pharmaceutical supply chain with a bill that focuses on boosting stockpiles through increased drug manufacturing in the U.S. and allied countries. The legislation, introduced Thursday and first shared with NBC News, was drafted in response to a report published المزيد

Number of migrant families with kids crossing U.S. border nearly triples in two months

The number of migrant families with children crossing the southern border has nearly tripled in the past two months, according to Customs and Border Protection data obtained by NBC News, feeding concern among some senior administration officials about a potential uptick in overall migrant crossings. Earlier this week, more than المزيد

Biden orders U.S. to share evidence of Russian war crimes with ICC

WASHINGTON — President Joe Biden has ordered the U.S. government to start sharing information about possible Russian war crimes in Ukraine with the International Criminal Court, a U.S. official familiar with the matter said Wednesday. The decision, which was made in recent days and first reported by The New York Times, المزيد

U.S. consumer confidence hits 2-year high — but recession fears linger

U.S. consumer confidence increased to a two-year high in July amid a persistently tight labor market and receding inflation, bolstering the economy’s prospects in the near term. But the economy is not out of the woods, with the survey from the Conference Board on Tuesday offering mixed signals. Consumers remain المزيد

More than 40 million people in the U.S. live in urban heat islands, climate group finds

Climate Central researchers found that nine major cities — New York, Houston, Los Angeles, Dallas, Chicago, San Antonio, San Diego, Phoenix and Detroit — each housed at least 1 million people currently affected by the urban heat island effect. In New York City, the group reported that almost 80% of المزيد

Russian jet harasses armed U.S. drone over Syria for a third time this month

A Russian fighter jet flew “dangerously close” to a U.S. hunter-killer drone over Syria on Sunday and released a flare causing severe damage to the drone’s propeller, the U.S. Air Force said Tuesday. At 12.23 a.m. ET on Sunday the Russian plane came within a few feet of the MQ-9 المزيد