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Weekend Briefing

From Reuters Daily Briefing

By Robert MacMillan, Reuters.com Weekend Editor

Thanks for joining me and the weekend gang. We have the latest news on the Ukraine war, climate change, Janet Yellen's trip to China and more. I also owe some of you long-delayed correspondence. It's coming!

An emptied cluster munitions container in Yenakiieve, Ukraine, February 23, 2015. REUTERS/Baz Ratner

U.S. will send cluster munitions to Ukraine

Big impact: Cluster bombs could provide a boost to Ukraine's counteroffensive to reclaim territory seized by Russian forces. Human-rights groups oppose the decision because the munitions can kill indiscriminately and pose a danger for decades after a conflict ends.
Diminished population: There's growing evidence that many Ukrainian refugees might never return, posing some tough questions about how the economy will recover once the fighting ends. I also recommend this story about the CEO of a grain company who built an export route via the Danube, saving the firm before he was killed in a Russian missile strike. Finally, keep an eye on next week's NATO meeting in Vilnius, which could mean a lot for Ukraine's hopes to join the alliance.

World breaks hottest-day record... again

Third time this week: Monday, Tuesday and Thursday set records, topping out at a global average temperature of 17.2 Celsius (63 Fahrenheit), a U.S. agency said, thanks to El Niño temperatures piling onto long-term global warming from greenhouse-gas emissions. This comes after an EU group said June was the hottest month ever.
And yet: As long as there's war and profit, oil and gas companies will favor fossil fuels. The U.N.'s climate chief called the CEO of Shell irresponsible for telling the BBC that cutting production was dangerous. Meanwhile, Siberia is burning, Italy and Spain are drying out, warmer Atlantic Ocean temperatures may bring more hurricanes, and the UK is melting.

Janet Yellen walks the diplomatic line during China visit

Criticism: The treasury secretary is the latest top official sent to repair the U.S. relationship with China ahead of a possible meeting between Joe Biden and Xi Jinping in September. She said the U.S. would hit back at unfair economic practices while seeking cooperation on the economy and climate change.
A closer look: The economies of both countries remain tightly linked through two-way trade that hit a record $690 billion last year. See these Reuters graphics for an examination of this relationship.

Did Meta really steal Twitter's trade secrets?

Thread: Many companies have accused competitors of stealing trade secrets by hiring former employees and making similar products, but legal experts say the cases are difficult to prove. Twitter would face that challenge if it sues Facebook parent Meta over its new and competing Threads service.
One lawsuit among many: Elon Musk filed the latest in a pile of lawsuits involving Twitter, accusing law firm Wachtell, Lipton, Rosen & Katz of pocketing $90 million of the company's money when it defeated Musk's bid to walk away from buying Twitter.

Before I forget…

Netherlands Prime Minister Mark Rutte tried to get political support to restrict immigration. He failed and the government collapsed.

Japan plans to release the equivalent of 500 Olympic-sized swimming pools full of treated radioactive water from the crippled Fukushima nuclear plant. There is some concern about safety.

The Orkney Islands are considering whether it might be better to rejoin Norway after more than 550 years under Scotland and then Britain.

Kyrgyzstan will allow adults to use "matronymics," middle names based on their mothers' names, rather than the standard patronymics adopted from Russian tradition. The activist who brought the court case now wants to ensure that children can have matronymics from birth.

Leqembi won a standard-approval nod from the FDA, the first Alzheimer's treatment to achieve that goal, clearing the way for wider insurance coverage of the drug.

Leon Gautier, the last surviving member of the French commando unit that waded ashore on D-Day, died at the age of 100.

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