NSC Spokesperson Kirby To Brief Press

13:30 ET 18:30 BST: White House National Security Council Spokesperson John Kirby is shortly due to join White House Press Secretary Karine Jean-Pierre at the podium to brief reporters.

• Livestream: https://www.whitehouse.gov/live/
• The presser comes ahead of the crucial debt limit vote, expected to take place around 20:15 ET 01:15 BST.
• Kirby may brief the press on the possibility that US supplied equipment was used in a drone strike on Russian territory this week.
• Kirby may also provide an update on an incident between a Chinese fighter jet and US surveillance plane over the South China Sea last week which has escalated tensions between Washington and Beijing and threated to derail a thaw in relations.
• US Secretary of State Antony Blinken said today at a press conference in Sweden that the incident underscores the need for “regular, open lines of communication,” including between the US and Chinese defense ministers.
• Blinken said: “The most dangerous thing is not to communicate and as a result, to have a misunderstanding, a miscommunication," adding that while the relationship between Washington and Beijing was competitive, the US did not want conflict.