LIVE UPDATES: Zelensky to Address US Defense Contractors Later September - NDIA

Ukrainian troops have shelled three settlements in the Donetsk region, firing a total of eleven 155mm and 152mm artillery shells, the Donetsk People’s Republic’s (DPR) mission to the Joint Center for Control and Coordination on the ceasefire regime (JCCC) said.

"Shelling was recorded from the side of the armed formations of Ukraine in the following directions: 21:49 [18:49 GMT on Friday] in the direction of Netailove - city of Donetsk (Kuibyshevskyi district): 3 shells of 152mm caliber were fired; 21:53 in the direction of Novomykhailivka - Dokuchaievsk: 3 shells of 155mm caliber were fired; … 00:00 - Dyleevka - Holmivskyi: 5 shells of 152mm caliber were fired," the DPR mission said in a statement on Telegram.

He added that Washington and its allies intend to set a price cap on Russian oil that will be set above its cost of production.

Fifteen EU countries have expressed support for the introduction of a common price cap for imported gas, with three more states approving it only for Russian supplies, Italian Minister for Ecological Transition Roberto Cingolani said on Friday.

"Fifteen countries spoke in favor of a common price ceiling, three would prefer it only for Russian gas, three do not have preliminary opinions, but would like long-term checks of economic sustainability to be carried out. The last five are either against or neutral," Cingolani said following the EU energy ministers' meeting in Brussels.

Cingolani noted that countries close to the Eastern European regions opposed the proposal due to concerns about a possible halt of Russian gas supplies. However, according to the minister, these countries do not consume a lot of energy.

The Biden administration asked all US embassies to process any complaints from host countries about issues related to difficulties purchasing Russian grain due to Western sanctions against Moscow, Ambassador Jim O’Brien, head of the State Department's Office of Sanctions Coordination, said on Friday.

"We've asked all of our embassies to contact their host governments and we have reached out anytime we have heard of a complaint," O'Brien said during a conference call.

The United Nations will let the member states to decide on a potential peacekeeping mission at the Zaporozhye nuclear power plant (ZNPP) but the focus at present is on demilitarizing the area and setting up a security zone, UN spokesperson Stephane Dujarric said on Friday.

"Our concern is on safety of the plant … I will let member states, talk to that, I think our focus right now, immediately, continues to be demilitarization setting up of a security zone" Dujarric said during a press briefing.

The sanctions that the countries of the collective West have imposed on Russia makes trading Russian grain challenging, United Nations spokesperson Stephane Dujarric said on Friday.

"Miss [Rebeca] Greenspan, on instructions from the Secretary-General back in the spring, was tasked to help iron out this very important initiative because, you know, they are no sanctions on Russia and on Russian fertilizer. But there's a complex situation within the more general sanctions regime that makes trade challenging for the private sector," Dujarric said during a press briefing.

Russia fully supports the International Atomic Energy Agency’s (IAEA) call to stop shelling of Energodar and the Zaporozhye nuclear power plant (ZNPP), Permanent Representative of Russia to International Organizations in Vienna Mikhail Ulyanov said on Friday.

Earlier in the day, IAEA Director General Rafael Grossi called for the immediate end of shelling of the ZNPP and Energodar.

"We fully support the appeal and demand of the #IAEA Director General that shelling of the town of Energodar and the #ZNPP must stop immediately," Ulyanov tweeted.

The European Commission also recommended that the countries of the bloc refuse to issue visas or cancel valid visas to Russian citizens in case of "security threat".

The finance and economy ministers of the European Union member states have agreed on providing guarantees to make five billion euros available in concessional loans to Ukraine, European Commission Executive Vice-President Valdis Dombrovskis said on Friday.

"The Ministers have endorsed next part of our exemptional macro financial assistance program and agreed to provide national guarantees to make further 5 billion euros available in concessional loans to Ukraine. This is part of the overall 9 billion exceptional macro financial assistance package for Ukraine," Dombrovskis told a press conference.

The White House expects the US Congress to commit $3.5 billion in military assistance for Ukraine before the end of the fiscal year amid Russia’s special military operation, press secretary Karine Jean-Pierre said on Friday.

“[W]e expect another $3.5 billion to be committed [for Ukraine] before the end of the fiscal year,” Jean-Pierre said during a press briefing.

The Czech Presidency of the Council of the European Union is ready to convene another extraordinary meeting of the EU energy ministers before the end of September to adopt new energy measures, Czech Minister of Industry and Trade Jozef Sikela said on Friday.

"If needed I am prepared to convene another extraordinary meeting in order to adopt a concrete solution before the end of this month," Sikela told a press conference.

The United States will not leave its European allies out in the cold amid the energy crisis caused by sanctions on Russian supplies, Secretary of State Antony Blinken said on Friday.

"While the costs of standing up to the Kremlin’s aggression are high, the costs of standing down would be even higher ... We won’t leave our European friends out in the cold," he said at a press conference with NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg.