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1 Russia And China Further Ties After Signing Economic Deal
The Presidents of China and Russia have signed an economic agreement. Details haven't been released, but it happened as Xi Jinping and Vladimir Putin met in Moscow. Their meeting is being closely watched by the U.S. as Russia keeps fighting its war in Ukraine. U.S. officials have previously warned that China may provide aid to Russia as the war goes on. Meanwhile, China has issued a proposal for ending the war in Ukraine, which includes no demands for Moscow to pull out its forces. China’s leader is currently in Russia for a series of meetings aimed at presenting the two countries' new "friendship without limits." Both Xi and Putin highlighted the importance of protecting each countries' energy security. Putin even boasted about plans for a gas pipeline from Siberia to China. What does the U.S. think of this meeting? National Security Council spokesman John Kirby told reporters that China should press Russia to pull troops out of Ukraine if Beijing wants to play a role in ending the war. Also, the U.S. is accelerating the timeline to get tanks to Ukraine as Russia's invasion rages on. Pentagon press secretary Brigadier General Pat Ryder says a decision has been made to send an older model of Abrams tanks to Ukraine as soon as this fall. The original plan included only sending a newer version of the tank, which would have taken well over a year. Ryder said it's important to get combat capability to Ukrainians sooner rather than later.
2 Trump Not Yet Indicted
Heavy security was in place in New York City in anticipation of former President Trump's possible indictment yesterday, but it ended up being a quiet day. Trump posted on social media over the weekend that he expected to be arrested yesterday in connection to the Manhattan DA's probe. The grand jury is considering whether to indict Trump in the case of alleged $130,000 in hush money involving adult film actress Stormy Daniels in 2016. The New York City grand jury is expected to reconvene today, and insiders are saying an indictment could be handed down as early as today. What’s the latest from inside the courtroom? Yesterday, Bob Costello, who was a legal adviser to former Trump lawyer Michael Cohen, said Cohen is a known perjurer. Cohen claims Trump reimbursed him for hush money payments to Daniels during the 2016 campaign to keep the adult film actress from exposing an alleged affair she had with Trump. This isn’t all the former president is dealing with, by the way. Trump also faces criminal probes in Atlanta and Washington that pose significant legal issues and could jeopardize his next presidential run. These issues pertain to the fact that prosecutors in Atlanta are considering bringing racketeering and conspiracy charges against the former President for his effort to overturn the 2020 election.
3 Deadly Fungus Spreading Through U.S. Healthcare Facilities
A fungus that kills more than three out of ten people it infects in U.S. healthcare facilities is spreading rapidly. The CDC is sounding the alarm about the fungus, a type of yeast called Candida auris, or C. auris. Researchers say it can spread either from person to person or by coming into contact with contaminated surfaces. Cases in the U.S. have nearly doubled between 2020 and 2021. Why is this disease so scary? Symptoms include a high fever with chills and what’s worse, it's reportedly drug-resistant. C. auris is found on the skin and throughout the body. The CDC says it isn't a threat to healthy people but can be deadly for those using ventilators or catheters who have lengthy hospital or nursing home stays. How is a person diagnosed? C. auris is typically diagnosed after cultures of blood or other bodily fluids are analyzed. The problem, however, is that to analyze them, you need updated machines which not all labs of which have. Furthermore, it can be hard to identify and can also be confused with other species of Candida.