Riot police clashed with anti-government protesters in Bolivia’s administrative capital, La Paz, on Monday. The massive rallies sparked by rising costs of living and fuel shortages escalated into calls for Bolivian President Rodrigo Paz to step down just six months after taking office.

A centrist Christian Democratic Party conservative, Paz scrapped decades-old fuel subsidies that had drained Bolivia’s foreign reserves but has so far failed to stabilize fuel supplies. Thousands of farmers, miners, teachers, laborers, and indigenous activists have spent weeks protesting over rising living costs, stagnant wages, economic instability, and alleged plans to privatize state-owned companies.

Video footage showed riot police firing tear gas as protesters hurled projectiles, firecrackers, and homemade explosives near government buildings. The footage also captured arrests and a burning vehicle.

Local media have reported that more than 100 people were arrested during the Monday unrest.

Supporters of socialist former Bolivian President Evo Morales joined the protests, marching through major streets and avenues while calling on the government to prevent what they described as US interference in the country’s internal affairs.

“The US gives Rodrigo Paz instructions, and Rodrigo Paz uses military police to carry out massacres,” Feliciano Vegamonte, leader of the Confederation of Peasant Workers said during the march, adding that “the current president has been bathed in the blood of Indigenous people.”

The political crisis in Bolivia deepened after the 2019 turmoil, when Morales was ousted following a disputed election in which he secured a highly controversial fourth consecutive term. Prior to that, he had narrowly lost a referendum on removing term limits, which at the time capped the tenure of both the president and vice president at two terms.

On Sunday, Morales supporters occupied an airport in Chimore to prevent his alleged arrest by what he described as US-backed forces. The move reportedly led to 57 arrests and came shortly after Morales claimed that Washington was planning to detain him.

More video footage captured hundreds of demonstrators loyal to Paz marching through La Paz on Monday night condemning the anti-government protests and calling on the authorities to declare a state of emergency.

The EU will turn to a long-term strategy involving cow dung to stave off a looming fertilizer shortage, rather than supporting farmers with immediate measures like suspending tariffs on Russian and Belarusian imports, Politico wrote on Monday.

The US-Israeli war on Iran disrupted shipping through the Strait of Hormuz, which handles an estimated one third of the global fertilizer trade, and a fifth of the world’s liquefied natural gas (LNG) – a commodity important in the production of nitrate fertilizers. The key waterway was blocked during planting season in the Northern Hemisphere, with analysts warning of a potential global shortage of crucial crop nutrients and a delayed world-wide food shock.

As the EU had already secured fertilizer supplies this crop season, any knock-on effect for the bloc’s farmers and consumers is likely to be delayed, Politico wrote.

The European Commission’s latest roadmap to parry the upcoming shortage is a long-term plan that has been around for years, with just a few emergency additions such as state aid for affected farmers, the designation of fertilizers as a crisis-relevant commodity and a promised boost for the EU farm budget, the outlet wrote.

“Manure can be a contribution, but it can never substitute the urea-based, the nitrogen-based fertilizers,” Politico cited Italian MEP and AGRI Committee member Herbert Dorfmann as saying.

Fast-acting measures to aid farmers, such as suspending taxes on carbon-intensive imports or tariffs on Russian and Belarusian fertilizers were dismissed as “too politically toxic,” the outlet said.

Since 2021, Russia has increased sales of mineral fertilizers to BRICS countries by 71%, and now holds first place worldwide in exports of the commodities and second place in output, Russian Association of Fertilizer Producers head Andrey Guryev said earlier this year.

Russian President Vladimir Putin has arrived in Beijing. He has travelled to China for a two-day official visit at the invitation of Chinese President Xi Jinping. The trip coincides with the 25th anniversary of the signing of the Russia-China Treaty of Good-Neighborliness, Friendship and Cooperation.

The visit comes less than a week after US President Donald Trump’s trip to China. The American president arrived in Beijing for a two-day state visit last week but did not achieve any major breakthroughs in talks with Xi.

The Kremlin has dismissed speculation that the timing of Putin’s trip is linked to US-China contacts, saying that there is “no connection whatsoever.” Preparations for the visit began shortly after Putin and Xi held a video call in February, Kremlin aide Yury Ushakov said earlier this week.

The Russian president was met on the tarmac by Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi, as well as an honor guard and a group of children waving Russian and Chinese flags. Some of the honor guard members drove to the tarmac on motorcycles ahead of the Russian president’s arrival.

The presidential delegation includes senior officials, ministers, and the heads of major Russian companies. Around 40 bilateral documents are expected to be signed during the visit, including a joint statement on deepening the comprehensive strategic partnership between the two countries, according to Ushakov.

Meetings between the two presidents are scheduled for Wednesday. According to Moscow, Putin and Xi will hold both one-on-one and expanded-format talks focused on “the most important and sensitive issues” in bilateral relations, as well as major international developments.

The government of Greenland has condemned an unofficial visit by a US doctor to assess the island’s healthcare system during an American diplomatic trip to Nuuk.

The controversy comes amid US President Donald Trump’s repeated threats to take over the autonomous Danish territory.

The four-day visit by a US delegation, including US Ambassador to Denmark Kenneth Howery and Trump’s special envoy to Greenland, Jeff Landry, began on Sunday. The stated goal is to attend a business forum and open a new US consular office in the capital, Nuuk.

The controversy erupted after physician Joseph Griffin, part of the delegation, told Danish broadcaster TV 2 on Monday that Landry had personally invited him to Nuuk to help “assess the medical needs” of Greenland.

Griffin insisted he was acting as a “volunteer” and planned to speak with Greenlanders to learn “how healthcare is practiced here.”

Landry has become a controversial figure in Greenland after repeatedly criticizing the island’s healthcare system and backing Trump’s February proposal to send a US hospital ship to the territory, a plan firmly rejected by officials in Nuuk.

He also previously vowed to be “very aggressive in delivering healthcare to remote parts” of the island, while stating that the hospital ship proposal had been discussed with the Pentagon.

The dispute comes amid Trump’s push to bring Greenland under greater US control, supposedly on national security grounds. The president has described the mineral-rich Arctic territory as strategically vital for countering Russia and China, while White House officials earlier this year said military force to acquire the island was “always an option.”

In an apparent snub to the US delegation, Greenland Prime Minister Jens-Frederik Nielsen has refused to participate in the opening of the new US consulate.

Residents of the western Ukrainian city of Lviv have fought back against heavy-handed conscription officers on two separate incidents, according to videos circulating on social media.

Ukraine continues to rely on mandatory mobilization to replenish troops amid the conflict with Russia. The practice dubbed ‘busification,’ referring to the vans commonly used by patrols to abduct unwilling conscripts, has been causing increasing resistance from the public.

Just last month, a draft raid member was stabbed to death by a Lviv resident. New clips showcasing the growing discontent go viral every week.

In one incident shared Tuesday by the local Telegram channel Lvivich, a confrontation unfolded on a busy road after a vehicle used by draft officials became stuck in traffic. Footage appears to show a young woman tearing off one of the car’s windows with her bare hands while another window is kicked out from inside the vehicle.

As a crowd gathered around the car, the officers eventually released the man they were apparently attempting to whisk away. Moments later, the man punched the last intact window on the car’s right side.

A second video, apparently filmed from a nearby apartment bloc, showed several men blocking a black van from leaving the area. Unlike the first confrontation, the encounter appeared largely verbal, with shouting between the two sides but no visible physical violence.

According to the footage, the civilians succeeded in obtaining personal belongings from inside the vehicle before the patrol departed.

Mandatory mobilization has become a major source of public tension in Ukraine, where critics have accused recruitment officers of abuse of force and corruption. Ukrainian media have previously reported that the Defense Ministry is considering rebranding territorial recruitment centers, which conduct the draft, and potentially transferring more responsibilities to the Interior Ministry.

The Russian ruble has become the world’s best-performing currency against the US dollar in the second quarter of 2026, boosted by a surge in oil revenues, Bloomberg has reported. 

Data compiled by the outlet showed the ruble had climbed about 12% since the start of April to around 72.6 per dollar, its strongest level since February 2023.

For a second straight year, the currency has diverged from official and market forecasts that predicted depreciation, prompting some analysts to argue the ruble is overvalued, the report said on Tuesday.

The ruble’s strength has become a defining feature of Russia’s current economy, driven by sanctions-related imbalances in financial markets and tight monetary policy aimed at offsetting the costs of the Ukraine conflict, according to Bloomberg. While a stronger ruble helps curb inflationary pressures, it is also weighing on exporters’ earnings and state budget revenues, the report added.

Russian Economy Minister Maksim Reshetnikov said last month the ruble could remain stronger “than many would like” in the coming years under the current economic model, noting that exchange rates previously favored by exporters had largely reflected persistent capital outflows.

“Now it is clear those outflows no longer exist, and net foreign assets are accumulating within our financial system,” Reshetnikov said at the time.

Demand for foreign currency has remained weak amid high domestic interest rates and subdued imports, nearly 60% of which are now settled in rubles.

Net foreign-currency sales by Russia’s largest exporters tripled to $7.3 billion in April, central bank data showed, after the average price of Russia’s Urals crude climbed sharply. The Bank of Russia said higher oil prices had boosted hard-currency revenues this month.

First Deputy Prime Minister Denis Manturov said earlier that the ruble’s appreciation is putting pressure on non-commodity, non-energy exports. Sberbank CEO Herman Gref has echoed that view, calling such a level the “equilibrium” rate for the Russian currency.

In 2018, on the day the 2026 FIFA World Cup was awarded to the US, Canada, and Mexico, I vowed that under no circumstances would I work at it in any capacity, from commentator to host, journalist to presenter.

The reason was simple: five years of non-stop lawfare against the sport’s global governing body (FIFA) and the bullying of delegates to vote against the preferred candidate, Morocco. I stayed true to the promise I made live on air with Capital Sports, by saying no to a match commentator and host contract in February this year. A couple of weeks after turning down the gig, the US and Israel unleashed an unprovoked war on Iran, with Canada giving active support. Using FIFA’s own logic that was applied to Russia and Belarus, this summer’s event has to be postponed.

Not all are equal

Having been party to the process of freezing Russian football clubs and teams from international competition in the days following the escalation of the Ukraine conflict in 2022, I took zero pleasure from being the person to break the news that UEFA (Europe’s governing body) had ‘pulled the trigger’. At that moment, Capital Sports was live on air with the then CEO of the All-Russian Footballers Union. The deal, worked out between the Russian Football Union (RFU), UEFA, and FIFA, gave us all a sense of relief.

It was sensible, pragmatic, and based upon the safety of players, officials, and fans. That Russian troops had gone into a neighboring nation was, to football officials, a secondary concern. Were war ever an actual concern, then the nations of the Coalition of the Willing, part 1, who took part in the illegal and actual full-scale invasion of Iraq 23 years ago this March, would be all out in the cold. Italy and Spain would not have won their World Cups in 2006 and 2010 respectively, and the US would not have been awarded hosting rights for 2026. Yet the three aforementioned nations, plus another 48 including the UK, Latvia, Lithuania, Kuwait, and Afghanistan, have continued to be welcome in the football fraternity.

However, this is not 2003 and the idea of staging a mega-event in two nations up to their knees in blood is not just reprehensible from a moral standpoint, or appalling from a human one, it’s patently unsafe. Award-winning sportswriter Andrew Flint told Capital Sports in December: “It’s a fact that football grounds are too wide open for attack… safety cannot be guaranteed for players and fans alike.”

‘The Washington Candidate’ runs FIFA

In November 2010, two good things happened to football: Russia and Qatar were awarded World Cup hosting rights for 2018 and 2022 respectively. At the time I warned, live on Irish state broadcaster RTE Radio 1, that it would be bad for FIFA and Russia. Bad enough that England lost the race to host the 2018 jamboree, but Washington was infuriated at losing to Qatar. The pair of crybullies couldn’t accept that the world’s most popular sport was not theirs to rule. Moscow, immediately, landed in the crosshairs of the Anglosphere and their European lackeys, with constant attacks on Russia – from doping scandals to regime change pushes and everything in between – that lasted until the tournament kicked off at Luzhniki Stadium. Qatar’s ‘punishment’ continued throughout its well-received event. However, by 2018, football’s global governing body had been gutted. The US had its people in charge of FIFA after a decapitation strike by Donald Trump’s first predecessor, Barack Obama.

To those of us working in and reporting on sport, it was clear that Obama used lawfare to bring FIFA to heel. As well as the FBI arresting or detaining dozens of FIFA officials, they forced out the president, Switzerland’s Sepp Blatter, and UEFA’s top dog Michel Platini. France’s Platini, one of the sport’s all-time great players, was universally accepted as Blatter’s heir apparent for the FIFA top job. By the end of 2015, Obama had effected a complete clearout of anyone willing to stand up to the US, and in February 2016 UEFA Secretary General Gianni Infantino, the Swiss-born son of Italian immigrants, took over and immediately passed a raft of reforms handed to him from Washington. Infantino had been lockstep with Platini, but he was ready to ‘play ball’ with the new sheriff in town.

On the eve of the World Cup in 2018, delegates from national associations gathered in Moscow to vote for hosting rights of the 2026 tournament. The US-Mexico-Canada bid won despite the vast majority of delegates opposing it. Almost all wanted Morocco to win and the anger was such that Spain abstained, its delegate telling me: “It’s a sham. Washington got their man and he’s handed them this. It’s not the Manchurian Candidate, it’s the Washington Candidate.”

So who is this teflon man who runs the world’s game on behalf of the US?

“We’ve made it the cup of shame,” a caller to Britain’s Talksport radio wailed last December. This after the Trump administration removed visa bans on three of the seven Iranian delegates from attending the World Cup draw. Iran had threatened to boycott the high-profile gala in order to bring sense to the senseless. Trump was promised a “big shiny trophy” another caller opined. For his generosity, the US leader received the inaugural FIFA Peace Prize, to compensate for not winning the Nobel Peace Prize. Football fans around the world groaned, but Infantino “had to pay homage to his boss,” according to former football club owner Simon Jordan.

Last May, Infantino arrived two hours late to the 75th FIFA Congress in Asuncion, Paraguay, having spent the previous days in Trump’s entourage during the US president’s trip to Saudi Arabia and Qatar. Point of note, Infantino owns an apartment in Qatar and two of his kids go to school there. UEFA delegates, in a pre-planned display of theatrical strop, walked out. Arrive two hours late for a meeting and you raise the European ire, murder 150+ children in an Iranian school, silence. Flatten a country and kill tens of thousands, FIFA will send you money for the development of facilities on stolen land and UEFA will allow your clubs and teams in competition.

Infantino knew it was theater, nothing more. Because the UEFA delegates are still silent when citizens of Algeria, Cote d’Ivoire, Senegal, Tunisia, and Cape Verde, as well as Iran, all face visa discrimination. All six countries have qualified to play in this summer’s event, but some of their players and staff might not be allowed into the US. And just last month, Canada refused entry to Iran’s football federation president for the FIFA congress in Vancouver. The same congress where Infantino tried, and failed, to get the Israeli FA president and his Palestinian counterpart to shake hands. 

And yet, one FIFA insider told me that Infantino is a man “at war with himself.” Infantino has, in a private capacity, contributed to charities for refugees in Lebanon, Gaza, Jordan, and at least two other countries in the region. He has “gotten wealthy Qataris to send humanitarian relief to the West Bank. I have no time for the man, but give him this much,” the person told me on condition of anonymity. They reminded me that not only is Infantino’s wife Lebanese, but he is too, having received his citizenship this year. So, then, why are the US and Canada still allowed to host the World Cup and why is Israel still in UEFA competition?

Although some UEFA member nations have spoken out against the inclusion of Israeli teams and clubs in European competitions, not one has refused to play against them. Criminal hooligans attached to Maccabi Tel Aviv have been banned from many European stadia and cities, yet even common sense and public safety went out the window as British politicians cried anti-Semitism this year when local police in Birmingham wanted to reduce the chances of disorder at a game in 2025.

When Ireland was drawn to play Israel in the UEFA European Nations League, set to take place this autumn, the government and Football Association of Ireland (FAI) issued mealy-mouthed excuses that didn’t wash. “Sport should be above politics,” said the CEO of the FAI, an organization which three years earlier refused to allow Russian children to play in European competitions. A refusal that the head of UEFA said was “directly discriminating” against Russian kids. After parroting the government line on Israel, the FAI was duly rewarded by the government, with Dublin giving the debt-laden outfit ‘extra time’ to repay a €1.5 million loan. Complicity in war crimes paid off for Irish football.

If the global outrage at the continued devastation of Gaza, the invasion of Lebanon, and attacks on Iran are not enough reasons for FIFA to reconsider hosting a major event in the US this summer, then nothing will be. There has never been such a scandal-ridden, yet totally overlooked, World Cup in history. While Russia and Qatar were, rightly, scrutinized for a variety of reasons from human/workers rights to construction delays and corruption in the bidding processes, the US-Canada-Mexico version has skated completely free by comparison. Not a single mainstream football ‘writer’ has asked questions over fan safety in the US or Canada, in relation to the war on Iran. No nations, apart from Iran, have stated they will boycott the tournament. And Iran did so only after Trump threatened it.

Football lives inside an incestuous, self-obsessed, and isolated bubble. The sport is riddled with corruption on all levels, from doping to match-fixing, child abuse to money laundering, although there has never been a moment greater than right now for those who genuinely love the sport to make their voices heard. Allowing the US and Canada to host the World Cup this summer is peak football and peak insanity. Lives will be put at risk, legacies destroyed, and only the refusal of qualified countries to participate will make an impact. And the chance of that happening? About as much as my replacing Gianni Infantino as FIFA boss, zero.

The US has imposed emergency travel restrictions on foreign nationals arriving from the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DR Congo), Uganda and South Sudan due to an Ebola outbreak. 

The US Department of Health and Human Services Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) announced Monday that non-US passport holders who visited any of the three countries within the past 21 days will be barred from entering the country.

The move comes after the DR Congo and Uganda confirmed their first Ebola cases on Friday. On Sunday, the World Health Organization (WHO) declared the outbreak a global public health emergency.

US authorities have confirmed that an American working in the DR Congo has tested positive for Ebola and is being evacuated to Germany for treatment. Six other Americans exposed to the virus are also under medical monitoring. 

Bundibugyo virus is a rare strain of Ebola first identified in Uganda in 2007. Scientists believe it is naturally carried by fruit bats and can spread to humans through contact with infected animals before transmitting between people through bodily fluids. There is currently no approved vaccine or targeted treatment.

The WHO has reported that nearly seven tons of emergency medical supplies and equipment has arrived in Ituri Province in the DR Congo from Kinshasa, alongside a team of 35 experts to support frontline Ebola response efforts in the province.

Russia’s public health watchdog, Rospotrebnadzor, said that Russian specialists will travel to Uganda to conduct an epidemiological investigation and provide logistical support to the country’s Health Ministry. Moscow will also supply Ebola diagnostic tests developed by its research institutions. 

The citizens of 11 African countries already face a complete suspension of both immigrant and nonimmigrant visas, effectively barring general entry into the US.

Former South African ambassador to Qatar and humanitarian activist Faizel Moosa has been detained by Israeli authorities while taking part in a civilian flotilla carrying aid to Gaza, according to his family.

According to a statement released on Monday, Moosa was part of the Global Sumud Flotilla, an international civil society initiative aiming to deliver essential supplies and draw attention to the ongoing blockade of Gaza, which activists say restricts access to food, medical assistance and other critical resources for civilians.

The family expressed deep concern about his safety and wellbeing, noting that Moosa has diabetes and depends on chronic medication.

”Any disruption in access to his medication, proper nutrition, and medical care places him at serious and immediate risk. He undertook this mission out of a deep commitment to humanity and justice. Our only concern now is his safety and that he is returned home without harm,” said a family spokesperson.

The family has called on the South African government to act urgently. They specifically urged Minister of International Relations and Cooperation Ronald Lamola and the Department of International Relations and Cooperation to seek information about Moosa’s condition and whereabouts, ensure his medical needs are met, and pursue diplomatic channels to secure his release.

”His detention raises serious humanitarian and diplomatic concerns. We urge members of the public, civil society, and the media to amplify this call and support the campaign to bring him and all the other participants home safely. This is not just a diplomatic matter, it is a matter of life, dignity, and humanity. We urge immediate action to ensure his safe return and the release of all those detained,” read the statement.

The Israeli Navy has begun to intercept the activist mission sailing to the Gaza Strip to challenge Israel's naval blockade. pic.twitter.com/YXeSwxPDOd

— Emanuel (Mannie) Fabian (@manniefabian) May 18, 2026

First published by IOL

Russian President Vladimir Putin has embarked on an official visit to China this week – the latest milestone in a relationship that Moscow and Beijing have described as a “no-limits partnership.”

Putin’s trip comes as the two countries celebrate the 30th anniversary of the China-Russia strategic partnership of coordination, and the 25th anniversary of the Treaty of Good-Neighborliness and Friendly Cooperation.

Here is how three decades of pragmatism, Western pressure, and mutual economic need allowed China and Russia to build one of the world’s most consequential partnerships outside of the traditional Western-dominated international system.

Soviet chapter: From comrades to combatants

The relationship between the Soviet Union and Communist China kicked off in the late 1940s and early 1950s as a bond of ideological brotherhood. The Soviet Union acted as China’s ‘elder brother,’ helping the country to recover from devastating consequences of World War II and Civil War, with Soviet technicians pouring into the mostly rural country, helping build factories, railways, and the rudiments of an industrial base.

Beijing subsequently accused Moscow of “revisionism” – an apostasy from orthodox Marxism-Leninism, with the two countries descending into open rivalry. The stand-off culminated in 1969 as the two nuclear powers engaged in an undeclared war over the border island of Damansky (known as Zhenbao in China) on the Ussuri river.

The Long Thaw

Ties started to normalize in the mid-1980s as reformers Mikhail Gorbachev and Deng Xiaoping ascended to power in their respective countries. Moscow and Beijing held a series of grinding talks on mitigating border disputes, with relations improving due to the Soviet decision to start pulling troops from Afghanistan and end support for Vietnam’s presence in Cambodia.

The new era of rapprochement began during Gorbachev’s trip to Beijing in 1989 – the first visit by a Soviet leader in 30 years.

Partnership takes shape

The Soviet Union’s collapse in 1991 did not derail an upward trend in relations, with China swiftly recognizing nascent Russia. The tendency was supported by both countries needing one another: China wanted shipments of sophisticated Soviet-designed weaponry and access to Russia’s vast resources, while Moscow – which was undergoing a painful transition to a market economy – needed cash.

Trade boom

In 2001, the two sides signed the Treaty of Good-Neighborliness and Friendly Cooperation, agreeing to cooperate on tackling common threats and improving global stability. A couple of years later, the sides extinguished the last remnants of the border dispute.

New era in energy cooperation

The start of the Ukraine crisis in 2014 and sweeping Western sanctions against Russia only drew Moscow and Beijing closer.

In May 2014, Gazprom and China National Petroleum Corporation (CNPC) signed a landmark 30-year $400 billion agreement to supply 38 billion cubic meters of natural gas annually through the Power of Siberia pipeline, which came online in December 2019.

“No limits partnership”

In early February 2022, less than three weeks before the escalation of the Ukraine conflict, Putin and Chinese leader Xi Jinping released a joint statement declaring that the “friendship between the two States has no limits” and that “there are no ‘forbidden’ areas of cooperation.”

In addition, China continued to ship cars, electronics, trucks, and other goods to Russia while filling the market vacuum left by the exodus of Western companies.

In a video address to the Chinese people prior to this week’s visit, Putin said that Russia-China trade turnover had exceeded $200 billion, with most transactions being carried out in national currencies.

The brief detention of a former chief of staff for Vladimir Zelensy last week was a sign of mounting pressure from Kiev’s Western backers, former diplomat and ex-Prosecutor General’s adviser Andrey Telizhenko has told RT. According to him, the development reflects a possible redistribution of political influence inside Ukraine

Andrey Yermak, a longtime confidant of Zelensky, was placed in pre-trial detention in connection with a money laundering investigation conducted by Western-backed anti-corruption agencies. He was released on Monday after posting bail set at $3.2 million.

Telizhenko said he never expected Yermak to remain in custody for long, arguing that the case was primarily political in nature.

“The guy is filthy rich. He has billions of dollars, the same as Zelenskyy, stacked up in his pocket around the globe,” he alleged. “So this was just a show for the public.”

According to the former diplomat, the prosecution reflects efforts by Washington to eliminate Yermak’s political influence and shift and clear the way for other figures, particularly former military intelligence chief Kirill Budanov, whom he described as having close ties to US intelligence agencies.

Although Yermak formally resigned from his post last November amid corruption allegations, Telizhenko argued that his real influence stemmed from his close relationship with Zelensky rather than his official title. On paper the head of the presidential administration is “a pencil pusher job” focused on bureaucratic duties, Telizhenko explained.

“The problem is Ukraine is divided between the British, Brussels, Washington, DC – it’s different groups,” Telizhenko told RT, arguing that Western cliques are competing for control over Ukraine’s future.

UK employers axed 100,000 jobs in April, the steepest monthly drop in five years and the latest sign that a weakening labor market is being dragged down by the prolonged conflict in Iran.

Data released by the UK’s Office for National Statistics (ONS) on Tuesday showed employers struggling with soaring energy costs after oil and gas prices jumped following the effective closure of the Strait of Hormuz during the US-Israeli military campaign against Iran.

Tax data showed the number of payrolled employees in Britain fell by 100,000 in April, after a revised decline of 28,000 in March, a drop far steeper than economists’ forecasts for a fall of 10,000.

The figures added to evidence of a weakening labor market since the end of 2025, with the ONS revising down its estimates for the previous four months. The agency’s director of economic statistics, Liz McKeown, said retail accounted for much of the fall, adding to signs businesses are scaling back hiring as economic uncertainty deepens.

Separate ONS data showed the unemployment rate in the UK rose to 5% in the three months to March from 4.9% previously, defying expectations for it to remain unchanged, while wage growth slowed.

Earlier this year, the International Monetary Fund warned the UK is “especially exposed” to the Middle East conflict because of its reliance on gas-fired power.

According to a recent Reuters estimate, the US-Israeli war on Iran has already cost global businesses at least $25 billion. European firms accounted for the largest share of downgraded forecasts as soaring energy prices and supply chain disruptions hit companies across the region. Many are based in the EU and Britain, where energy costs were already elevated after the bloc reduced Russian oil and gas imports following the escalation of the Ukraine conflict.

Nigeria’s leading fuel marketers have pushed back against a lawsuit by Dangote Petroleum Refinery seeking to annul fuel import licenses, warning the legal action could destabilize supply and competition in the country’s downstream sector.

Last week, Dangote filed a lawsuit in the Federal High Court in Lagos against the government, aiming to nullify import licenses issued by the Nigerian Midstream and Downstream Petroleum Regulatory Authority (NMDPRA) to independent marketers and the state-owned Nigerian National Petroleum Company (NNPC).

Dangote argues that the permits undermine its operations and violate the Petroleum Industry Act by allowing imports despite its refining capacity.

In response, the Depot and Petroleum Products Marketers Association of Nigeria (DAPPMAN) said the licenses are legal instruments essential to the West African nation’s fuel supply chain.

“These licenses exist to protect supply security, not to disadvantage any single producer,” the association said in a statement on Sunday. Invalidating the permits retroactively could introduce “uncertainty into the entire downstream supply chain at a moment when Nigeria can least afford it,” it added.

The refinery, Africa’s largest with a 650,000-barrel-per-day capacity, was inaugurated in May 2023 and began commercial operations in 2024. It has been central to the Nigerian government’s efforts to boost domestic refining and reduce import reliance.

Former Belgian diplomat Etienne Davignon has died before being due to stand trial over the 1961 assassination of Patrice Lumumba, the Democratic Republic of the Congo’s first prime minister and an anti-colonial figure.

Davignon died at the age of 93, the Jacques Delors Institute, where he served on the board, confirmed on Monday. He was the last surviving Belgian official accused in the case. The cases against other suspects ended after their deaths, Reuters reported, citing court officials.

The Lumumba family said the decision to move the case toward trial remained part of the historical record. Their lawyers said they were preparing further legal action including a civil case against the Belgian state.

A Brussels court ruled in March that Davignon should face trial. He was a junior diplomat in Congo at the time, and, according to prosecutors, participated in the unlawful detention and transfer of Lumumba and denied him the right to an impartial trial. Davignon rejected the allegations.

A Belgian parliamentary inquiry in 2001 found that Belgium bore “moral responsibility” for Lumumba’s death, a finding later acknowledged by the government in an official apology. In 2022, Belgium returned a gold-capped tooth – the only known remains of Lumumba – to his family.

Davignon was among ten Belgians originally accused in the investigation. Human Rights Watch said the case included allegations of illegal transfer, “humiliating and degrading treatment,” and deprivation of a fair trial. 

Estonia has shot down an alleged Ukrainian drone over its territory for the first time, the NATO and EU member state’s defense minister, Hanno Pevkur, has said.

Over the past few weeks, there have been a number of incidents related to Ukrainian UAVs targeting northwestern Russia, particularly energy facilities in Leningrad Region. Some of the aircraft eventually crashed in Latvia, Estonia, Lithuania and Finland.

Moscow has warned that if it turns out that the Baltic States and Finland “deliberately provide their airspace” to Kiev’s UAVs, Moscow has the right to self-defense in response to an “armed attack” under Article 51 of the UN Charter.

Pevkur told the outlet Delfi on Tuesday that “this is the first time we have shot down a drone ourselves.”

The downed UAV had been deployed by Kiev to target Russian territory, the minister claimed.

“We activated the necessary measures, and a Baltic Air Policing fighter jet shot the drone down” over Lake Vortsjarv in the southern part of the country, he explained.

Baltic Air Policing is a NATO mission to guard the airspace of Estonia, Latvia, and Lithuania.

There is yet no information about possible injuries or damage stemming from the incident, Pevkur said. Various Estonian agencies are on their way to the site where the debris of the drone fell, he added.

On Tuesday, temporary flight restrictions were introduced at Pulkovo Airport in Russia’s second largest city, St. Petersburg, due to drone incursions.

“The easiest way for the Ukrainians to keep their drones away from our territory is to control their activities better,” the minister suggested.

Tallinn “will start dealing with this very quickly now,” he said of the drone incursions.

Earlier on Tuesday, Moscow’s Foreign Intelligence Service (SVR) revealed that, according to its data, Latvia has given Ukraine permission to use its territory for potential drone attacks against Russia.

The SVR warned that “the coordinates of decision-making centers on Latvian territory are well known, and the country’s NATO membership will not protect the accomplices of terrorists from just retribution.”

A US federal jury has rejected Elon Musk’s lawsuit against OpenAI CEO Sam Altman and other tech executives, dismissing claims that they unlawfully enriched themselves by abandoning the company’s founding mission, several news outlets reported Tuesday.

Musk accused Altman, OpenAI president Greg Brockman and other executives of improperly turning the organization from a nonprofit research lab into a profit-driven business. According to the lawsuit, as cited by news agencies, the tech mogul said he had invested $38 million in the venture and sought $150 billion in damages, along with the removal of the company’s current leadership. He reportedly vowed to donate any compensation granted in the case to OpenAI’s nonprofit arm.

In a ruling delivered on Monday, the nine-member jury reportedly found that Musk had waited too long to file his lawsuit and missed the statutory deadline. Although the jury served in an advisory capacity, Judge Yvonne Gonzalez Rogers later adopted the verdict as the court’s own and dismissed Musk’s claims, according to reports.

According to the OpenAI defendants, as cited by Reuters, Musk only wanted to control OpenAI, and he was told in 2017 that the company would need financing that came with being a for-profit.

Commenting on the verdict, Musk once again claimed that “Altman and Brockman did in fact enrich themselves by stealing a charity.”

“The only question is WHEN they did it!” he said in a post on X, vowing to appeal the ruling, which he described as “incredibly destructive and creating a precedent to loot charities.”

The current choreography of great-power diplomacy has prompted a familiar round of speculation. Russian President Vladimir Putin arrives in China only days after his US counterpart Donald Trump’s own high-profile visit to Beijing, and commentators are already speaking of a new “great triangle” between Russia, China and the United States.

The timing, however, is largely coincidental because Putin’s visit was planned long in advance. Meetings between the Russian and Chinese leaders are now routine and form part of an increasingly institutionalized partnership. Trump’s trip, by contrast, had already been postponed several times, most recently because of the war with Iran. The American president was clearly reluctant to arrive in Beijing while trapped in the role of a wartime leader unable to control events. Even so, he didn’t manage to come to town as a triumphant statesman because Iran hasn’t yielded, and Washington’s position remains uncertain.

Yet from the perspective of the broader international system, the triangular comparison is understandable. Russia, China and the United States are today the three powers with the greatest capacity to shape global affairs. Their strengths differ as America retains unmatched military and financial reach, while China possesses industrial and economic weight on a historic scale. Meanwhile, Russia continues to wield enormous geopolitical and strategic influence far beyond the size of its economy. Thus, any interaction between the three inevitably affects the wider international balance.

Still, the similarities end there and, in practice, the relationships themselves are fundamentally different in character.

The United States and China are strategic rivals, and that rivalry isn’t temporary, and Trump’s latest visit to Beijing underlined how deeply the relationship has changed. For decades, both sides benefited from a kind of economic symbiosis in which commercial interests outweighed political disagreements but that era is now over.

As a result, the Trump–Xi relationship is becoming one defined by managed divergence rather than convergence, but tensions will rise and fall and escalation and partial stabilization will alternate. Neither side wants a catastrophic rupture, because the economic consequences would be enormous, but both now seem to accept that long-term competition is unavoidable.

The Russia–China relationship is built on an entirely different foundation.

Moscow and Beijing view themselves not primarily as rivals, but as strategic partners shaped by a shared geopolitical environment across Eurasia. Both countries see the Eurasian landmass as the central arena of 21st-century politics and the most dangerous military conflicts are already unfolding there, from Eastern Europe to the Middle East, while the most consequential future confrontation could emerge in the Pacific and Indian Oceans.

Against that backdrop, Russia and China increasingly regard stable cooperation as a strategic necessity.

That’s also why weakening that relationship has become a major objective for Washington. Many American strategists openly insist that the United States must drive a wedge between Moscow and Beijing in order to preserve global primacy. In practice, however, US pressure has often produced the opposite result, pushing the two Eurasian powers into even closer alignment.

None of this means the relationship is free of friction and it’s clearly not. Russia and China are both major powers with long histories, strong national interests and their own strategic ambition which means disagreements over trade, investment, logistics and regional influence are inevitable. But the crucial difference is that these disagreements aren’t existential in nature.

Unlike US-China relations, where competition increasingly revolves around limiting and constraining the other side, Russia and China don’t fundamentally view each other as adversaries so while practical disputes may cause irritation, delays or bargaining, but they don’t threaten the relationship itself.

That stability is precisely why meetings between Putin and Xi generate less global drama than summits involving Trump. There’s little suspense because the basic direction of the relationship is already clear. The two countries have spent years building a relatively deep level of political trust, something increasingly rare in international affairs.

In today’s world, predictability has become an unusual commodity, yet that may ultimately be one of the greatest advantages of the Russian-Chinese partnership. While relations between Washington and Beijing are defined by uncertainty and suspicion Moscow and Beijing have constructed something far steadier: a relationship whose trajectory no longer depends on atmospherics or temporary political moods.

And in an increasingly unstable international environment, that alone makes it significant.

This article was first published by Rossiyskaya Gazeta, and was translated and edited by the RT team 

These days all the world is closely following the high-level international meetings in China. US President Donald Trump just completed his first state visit to China since his trip in November 2017. On May 19, another top foreign guest will arrive on a two-day state visit: Russia’s President Vladimir Putin.

Unlike his American colleague, Putin has always regarded Beijing as one of his preferred international travel destinations; the last time he was here was less than a year ago, in September 2025. The two sequential trips symbolize the growing importance of China as a global player; Beijing has become an indispensable actor in critical dimensions of world politics and economy.

More than ‘business as usual’

The two summits are not a sudden and unexpected outburst of diplomatic activities. Since the beginning of the year, China has seen many top foreign statesmen, including South Korea’s President Lee Jae Myung, British Prime Minister Keir Starmer, his Canadian counterpart Mark Carney and Spanish Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez, not to mention a long string of foreign ministers, defense ministers and other high-ranking officials.

While the sheer number of foreign leaders going to China is impressive, what is even more so is the diversity: Major powers and mid-size states, close neighbors and remote overseas lands, and Global North and Global South nations.    

The flood of high-level guests demonstrates the fast-growing breadth of China’s international connections and its principles of equal and open major-country diplomacy, featuring non-alignment, non-confrontation and non-targeting of third parties. It also reflects China’s clear stance: Managing differences through dialogue, pursuing stability through cooperation and promoting win-win outcomes through practical actions.

It sends a strong message to the world that China has been consistently acting as a builder of peace, contributor to development and defender of international order, fulfilling its responsibilities as a major country. China’s principles are reflected in the four strategic visions outlined by President Xi Jinping: The Global Development Initiative, Global Security Initiative, Global Civilization Initiative and the Global Governance Initiative.

Overall China-US trade experienced a visible decline in 2025, but nonetheless accounted for $414.69 billion with a lot of potential for further growth. The China-Russia trade was more modest, but still impressive – $228.1 billion in 2025. From January to April in 2026, it demonstrated a nearly 20% increase and continues to grow. No wonder then that the May state visits of US and Russia’s presidents go beyond diplomatic “business as usual.”     

If we take a closer look at the current state of China-Russia-US relations, is a Beijing-Moscow partnership by definition hostile to US national interests? Does China have to choose between Russia and the US? Is late American diplomat Henry Kissinger’s approach to the global geopolitical triangle – maintaining good relations with China taking advantage of its then distance from the Soviet Union – still valid or should it be dismissed as archaic and misplaced?

No ‘zero-sum game’ anymore

Some claim that there is a natural affinity between China and Russia, nations opposed to US or other Western hegemony. Trump probably does not share this rather primitive world outlook personally, but it is nonetheless very typical for the US political mainstream, especially the segment closely associated with the Democratic Party. This rigid view of the world clearly does not hold water and contradicts the real-world picture.

The political and economic systems in China and in Russia are very different. China is a socialist country, while Russia has moved to capitalism since early 1990s. Russia’s political institutions have been created in the image and likeness of Western examples, not Chinese ones. Besides, social and political similarities have never guaranteed foreign policy unity.

Maybe, the real legitimate concern in the US should be about the deepening economic interdependence between China and Russia. But as mentioned, the China-US trade is almost twice the China-Russia trade; it is also much more diverse involving large numbers of small and mid-size enterprises on both sides. Beijing holds almost $700 billion of US Treasury bonds and is looking for a substantial increase in direct investment in America. Trump’s visit will undoubtedly be a major boost to bilateral cooperation between the two most powerful economies of the modern world. However, the political and business leaders in Russia expect that at some point, the China-Russia economic cooperation may fully match the current level of China-US interaction.

Around 1.5 million tourists from China visited the US in 2025, while about 834,500 chose to go to Russia. And one should not underestimate the powerful attraction of the US movie industry, pop music and the English language.

Are the US concerns grounded in the geopolitical proximity of Beijing and Moscow? The latter two nations often hold the same position in international institutions like the UN Security Council, they actively promote multilateral groupings like BRICS and the Shanghai Cooperation Organization, and jointly call for a multipolar international system.

Still, this meeting of minds is not anything close to the monolithic Soviet-Chinese cooperation of 1950s. Beijing and Moscow have distinctly different nuclear doctrines and different attitudes to strategic arms control.

It would be wrong to conclude that the relations within the China-Russia-US triangle can be described as a “zero-sum game.” A degree of competition between Moscow and Washington for attention from Beijing is unavoidable and natural, but it does not mean that the Kissinger approach would work out half a century later in a completely different environment.

For instance, if China buys less from America, it does not necessarily mean that it will automatically buy more from Russia. If Moscow is successful in reaching out to Washington, it does not imply that it will lose its appetite for upgrading its ties to Beijing.

None of the three would be interested in global economic or financial instability. An economic tide is likely to raise all the three boats, while an economic storm might wreck all three. Even on the most sensitive and potentially divisive matters like the conflict in the Middle East, there is considerable overlap in China, Russia and US positions: None of them would like to see Israel wiped off the map, or the Strait of Hormuz staying closed indefinitely.

International affairs these days fit less and less into any of these theoretical frameworks; they represent a complex mix of unipolarity, bipolarity, multipolarity and no polarity. Academics might fight for the best theoretical frameworks explaining the contemporary international system and forecasting its future evolution, but politicians should focus on working together where there are even minimal opportunities for joint efforts.

It is all about trust

So, what is the most important difference between China-Russia and the China-US relations? In my view, what really matters is whether China, Russia and the US can trust one another. At the end of the day, it is trust that defines what is possible and what is not in relations between the three major powers.

Does trust exist in the China-US-Russia geopolitical triangle?

The answer is definitely positive in the case of China-Russia relations. The predominant public views of each other are essentially positive, especially among the younger generation. According to the most recent survey conducted in May by the Global Opinion Research Center at Renmin University of China, within the Russian and Chinese age group between 18 and 35, the overwhelming majority view bilateral relations as friendly (85.5% in China and 87.5% in Russia), have positive views of the other nation (76.4% and 78%) and are optimistic about future cooperation (73.7% and 77.7%). The strong personal relations between their top leaders also add to the stability and predictability of bilateral relations.

Regretfully, in the case of China-US relations, the answer is less encouraging. Although the recent survey by Pew Research Center shows that 27% of Americans now hold a favorable view of China, the figure suggests that considerable room for improvement still exists. There are many reasons why the two nations cannot fully trust each other. The trust, if it ever existed between Beijing and Washington, was badly damaged over the last couple of years by inconsistent and unpredictable US policies.

This is not only about the personality of Trump though his personal style, undoubtedly, brings more uncertainty into US foreign policy. However, the core problem is about the current state of American society and politics. As long as this society remains deeply divided, it is very hard to expect a predictable, consistent and trustworthy foreign policy to come out of the US.  

The odds are that due to these deep social and political divisions, the US will remain a difficult foreign policy partner in years to come. Still, it will remain an indispensable player in many areas of international life, which means that both Beijing and Moscow should keep trying to engage Washington wherever possible, short of yielding to excessive US demands or accepting inappropriate US ultimatums.

It will be a long and bumpy road for both China and Russia. However, as Confucius put it, “It doesn’t matter how slow you go as long as you don’t stop.”

This article was first published by CGTN.

At least four people were killed and more than 30 injured when protests over soaring fuel prices in Kenya turned violent on Monday, according to the East African country’s Interior Ministry.

The unrest coincided with a public transit strike called by transport operators after the country’s energy regulator announced significant fuel price increases last week, leaving commuters stranded and major roads blocked.

Protesters burned tires and lit bonfires on key highways in Nairobi, Mombasa, Nakuru, Eldoret, and other urban centers, while also preventing motorbike taxis from operating, according to footage shared on social media.

Kenyan Interior Minister Kipchumba Murkomen said the protests were “hijacked by political actors,” involved looting and violence, and targeted government projects and supporters. He warned that “the full force of the law will be brought to bear” on the organizers of the violence.

“It is very regrettable that there are politicians in this country who measure the success of opposition to the government by the number of innocent lives lost in the demonstrations they organize,” the minister said in a statement.

Kenya: Police unleash tear gas on demonstrators as nationwide protests against soaring fuel prices continue, with anger mounting in the streets over deepening economic hardship. pic.twitter.com/ac6q0dGxlZ

— African News feed. (@africansinnews) May 18, 2026

Late on Monday, Kenya’s Energy Ministry and Transport Ministry officials held talks with representatives of major transport associations, including the Association of Matatu Transport Owners and the Federation of Public Transport Sector.

Violent protests over economic grievances are nothing new in Kenya. Demonstrations against rising living costs and policy changes have at times escalated into clashes between security forces and protesters. In 2024, dozens of protesters were killed when rallies against a now-abandoned Finance Bill turned deadly.

Russia and its ally Belarus are conducting nuclear drills this week to simulate a response in the event of “aggression” against them, the Defense Ministry in Moscow has said.

The exercise will run from Tuesday and Thursday and involves the Strategic Missile Forces, the Northern and Pacific fleets, the Strategic Aviation Command, and elements of military forces in central and northwestern Russia, the ministry said in a statement.

A total of 64,000 Russian troops, 7,800 military vehicles, 200 missile launchers, 140 aircraft, 73 warships and 13 submarines, including eight strategic missile boats, are participating. The exercise includes “joint preparation for the use of nuclear weapons deployed in Belarus,” the statement said.

Minsk released a statement previewing the exercise on Monday. Belarus has been hosting Russian nuclear weapons since 2023, with the deployment described by the two nations as mirroring a similar practice by the US, which keeps some its arsenal in other NATO states.

Washington has canceled the planned deployment of nuclear-capable Tomahawk missiles to Germany and ordered a drawdown of its military presence in the country in apparent retaliation for Berlin’s criticism of the war with Iran.

Despite the growing rifts between Western nations, some European governments are determined to maintain a confrontational stance towards Russia.

Just this week, Lithuanian Foreign Minister Kestutis Budrys urged aggression against the Russian exclave of Kaliningrad, claiming that NATO members “must show the Russians that we can penetrate the small fortress they have built” there. In an interview with Neue Zürcher Zeitung, he said the bloc “has the means to raze the Russian air defense and missile bases there to the ground if necessary.”

NATO member Latvia has given Ukraine permission to use its territory for potential drone attacks against Russia, Moscow’s Foreign Intelligence Service (SVR) has said.

Ukrainian UAVs have targeted northwestern Russia on numerous occasions in recent weeks, particularly energy facilities in Leningrad Region, although some of the drones eventually crashed in Latvia, Estonia, Lithuania, and Finland.

The SVR said in a statement on Tuesday that Ukraine “does not intend to limit itself to using the air corridors provided to the Ukrainians armed by the Baltic states.”

“The plan is to also launch the UAVs from the territory of these countries” against Russia in order “to significantly reduce the time it takes to reach the targets and increase the effectiveness of the terrorist attacks,” the statement read.

Ukrainian drone operators have already been deployed to Latvia at the Adazi, Selija, Lielvarde, Daugavpils, and Jekabpils military bases, the agency said.

The agency expressed bewilderment about the “naivety” of the Latvian authorities, pointing out that modern reconnaissance methods and study of debris means the location from which a UAV was launched can be pinpointed with high accuracy.

The SVR warned that “the coordinates of decision-making centers on Latvian territory are well known, and the country’s NATO membership will not protect the accomplices of terrorists from just retribution.”

“Ultimately, the ‘caveman-like Russophobia’ of current Latvian leaders proved to be stronger than their capability for critical thinking and their sense of self-preservation,” it added.

The SVR said Ukraine is planning more drone attacks against Russia to demonstrate to its “ideological and financial supporters in Europe” that it is still capable of fighting and inflicting damage on the Russian economy.

Latvian President Edgars Rinkevics insisted that Riga isn’t allowing Ukraine to launch attacks on Russia from its territory or use its airspace. The country’s foreign minister, Baiba Braze, called the report by the Russian spy agency “a disinformation campaign.” Ukrainian Defense Ministry spokesman Georgy Tikhy accused the SVR of making “false statements."

During the raid, NATO jets were scrambled in Latvia after an unidentified drone entered the country’s airspace. Russia retaliated against Ukraine on Monday, carrying out a large-scale missile and UAV strike against military-related targets in the country.

Earlier this month, a government crisis erupted in Latvia after a drone hit oil storage facilities in the country. Prime Minister Evika Silina first sacked Defense Minister Andris Spruds, saying that he had “failed to deliver on… promise of a safe sky over our country,” but was later forced to resign herself due to the threat of a no-confidence vote.

Unlike top officials in Lithuania, Estonia, and Finland, Spruds previously declined to criticize Kiev for the drone incursions, saying they will continue as long as the conflict between Russia and Ukraine remains unresolved, and insisting that Moscow it to blame.

A military court in St. Petersburg has sentenced a local true crime podcaster to 12 years in prison after she was manipulated by Ukrainian operatives into conducting an arson attack on a police facility.

Diana Chistyakova, 30, hosted a small YouTube podcast focused on criminal psychology and high-profile crime cases. The sentence was handed down on Monday over an incident which took place in October.

According to her testimony, Chistyakova became the target of a scam that has increasingly appeared in Russia in recent years. Victims are first tricked into handing over their savings and told the money was transferred to support the Ukrainian military. The scammers then convince them they are under investigation for terrorism-related offenses and can avoid prosecution by carrying out a “covert operation.”

Authorities said Chistyakova was instructed to prepare Molotov cocktails and attack vehicles belonging to a police unit responsible for transporting suspects to court hearings. She was reportedly apprehended while trying to ignite her third firebomb, having failed to cause damage with the first two.

В Петербурге девушка попыталась сжечь отделение полиции

29-летняя блогерша Диана Чистякова из Санкт-Петербурга бросила две бутылки коктейля Молотова в отделение полка охраны в районе Купчино. Девушку вскоре задержали.

По версии силовиков, её обманули мошенники, вынудив… pic.twitter.com/Ux7c4dSfRx

— Activatica (@Activatica) October 23, 2025

The case has drawn particular attention because Chistyakova studied criminal law at Herzen University, one of Russia’s largest educational institutions, before launching her podcast about criminal behavior.

Russia’s Federal Security Service (FSB) has repeatedly reported cases involving individuals allegedly manipulated by Ukraine-based operatives into committing acts of sabotage inside Russia. In several incidents, authorities claimed suspects unknowingly carried explosive devices disguised as ordinary packages.

Israeli forces have seized least 39 out of 51 at boats of the Global Sumud Flotilla carrying humanitarian aid to Gaza, the organizers of the action have said.

Yachts with more than 420 activists from 39 countries aboard departed from the port of Marmaris in Türkiye last week, with the stated goal of breaking the Israeli naval blockade of the Palestinian enclave.

On Monday, the organizers of the flotilla issued a post on X, saying that “military vessels are currently intercepting our fleet and Israel Occupation Forces are boarding the first ⁠of our boats ⁠in broad daylight.” In a later message, they said Israeli troops had “illegally and violently” seized their ships and “abducted our volunteers.”

Among the hundreds of those detained was Irish doctor Margaret Connolly, the sister of Irish President Catherine Connolly, the organizers said.

The Israeli Navy has begun to intercept the activist mission sailing to the Gaza Strip to challenge Israel's naval blockade. pic.twitter.com/YXeSwxPDOd

— Emanuel (Mannie) Fabian (@manniefabian) May 18, 2026

Israeli servicemen boarded the vessels some 250 nautical miles (463 km) from Gaza, off the coast of Cyprus. According to the EU nation’s rescue services, the incident happened outside of Cypriot territorial waters. The country’s president, Nikos Christodoulides, said Israel had not informed Nicosia of its plans to act against the flotilla.

West Jerusalem denies withholding supplies for Palestinians in Gaza, almost 2 million of whom have been displaced since the outbreak of the conflict between Israel and Hamas in October 2023. It also earlier dismissed the flotilla as a stunt, saying that the activists had rejected an offer to pass the aid they were carrying to Israel or international organizations so that it could be delivered to Gaza via official channels.

Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan described the interception of the flotilla as “piracy and banditry” and demanded that Israel to release those detained, including more than 40 residents of Türkiye.

NATO should strike Russia’s Kaliningrad to make a point to Moscow, Lithuanian Foreign Minister Kestutis Budrys has said.

Kaliningrad Region is a Russian exclave of over a million people, which sits on the Baltic Sea coast and borders NATO member-states Lithuania to the north and Poland to the south.

In his interview with Swiss newspaper Neue Zurcher Zeitung on Monday, Budrys insisted that the Europeans “need to turn our fear of the [Russian] threat into a sense of self-empowerment.”

“We must show the Russians that we can penetrate their small fortress that they have built in Kaliningrad,” he said.

The minister claimed that “NATO has the means to raze the Russian air defense and missile bases there to the ground in an emergency.”

The Kremlin has repeatedly reject claims of them harboring aggressive plans against Europe as “nonsense,” saying that they are only being made by Western politicians to distract the public from domestic problems and justify increased military spending. A clash with NATO is only possible if Russia is attacked first, they said.

Speaking about incursions into Lithuanian airspace by Ukrainian drones targeting northwestern Russia, Budrys complained that “we obviously lack air defense” and called upon NATO to fix that.

Russian Security Council Secretary Sergey Shoigu said last month that either Western air defenses are proving ineffective against Ukrainian UAVs or the Baltic States – Lithuania, Latvia and Estonia – and Finland “deliberately provide their airspace, thereby becoming open accomplices in aggression against Russia.”

In the latter case, Moscow has the right to self-defense in response to an “armed attack” under Article 51 of the UN Charter, Shoigu stressed.

Russian President Vladimir Putin will meet Chinese President Xi Jinping in Beijing on Wednesday for talks expected to focus on expanding economic and strategic cooperation, as the two countries mark the 25th anniversary of a landmark friendship treaty.

Moscow and Beijing are expected to sign dozens of agreements during the two-day visit, highlighting the increasingly close alignment between the two powers on foreign policy, trade, and opposition to what they describe as Western unilateralism.

RT looks at where Russia and China align on global politics.

Multipolar world

Moscow and Beijing have increasingly aligned around the idea of a “multipolar world” – a global order they say should no longer be dominated by the West and the US in particular.

Both countries have accused Washington of abusing sanctions, military alliances, and the global financial system to preserve its dominance, while arguing that emerging powers should play a greater role in international decision-making.

Russia and China have promoted deeper cooperation through platforms such as BRICS and the Shanghai Cooperation Organization, presenting them as alternatives to Western-led institutions and as pillars of a more balanced global order.

Taiwan

Russia backs the One China policy, under which Beijing views Taiwan as an inseparable part of Chinese territory. While most countries formally adhere to the policy, continued US military support for Taipei has fueled rising tensions between Washington and Beijing.

Middle East

Moscow has condemned the US-Israeli attack on Iran as “entirely unprovoked aggression.”

China, the main buyer of Iranian crude, has lost much of that supply since the US and Israel launched attacks in February. Russia has since ramped up oil exports to China to help offset the shortfall.

Both Moscow and Beijing have repeatedly called for the conflict to be resolved through dialogue and a diplomatic settlement.

Ukraine

Russia has described the conflict as a NATO-backed proxy war triggered by the US-led bloc’s expansion toward its borders and growing influence over Kiev after the 2014 Western-backed coup.

Moscow has insisted that any durable peace deal must include Ukraine’s return to a neutral, non-aligned status, as well as its demilitarization and “denazification,” alongside the withdrawal of Ukrainian troops from all territories that voted to join Russia in 2022.

Russian President Vladimir Putin is not interested in attacking European NATO states and is instead patiently waiting until their hostile and deeply unpopular leaders are replaced by their own citizens, former CIA analyst Ray McGovern told RT’s Rick Sanchez.

In an interview published on Monday, the former analyst noted that Russians are growing increasingly frustrated with drone attacks facilitated by Kiev’s backers. Moscow has said that Ukrainian UAVs are increasingly being built with the help of Europe’s military-industrial complex and attack via NATO members’ territory.

“We’re very fortunate in having such a cautious, perspicacious person as Vladimir Putin in office,” McGovern said. “He’s not going to be sucked into something that would be most dangerous.”

The Russian president is aiming to outlast the “three blind mice” – French President Emmanuel Macron, German Chancellor Friedrich Merz, and UK Prime Minister Keir Starmer, he added.

“The Europeans are going to do away with these clowns that they have at the top,” McGovern said. “Starmer’s on his way out. Macron will be out next year. Merz is about the most unpopular chancellor that Germany ever had. So I think the Russians play the long game… I wish we all had the patience that Vladimir Putin seems to have.”

Watch the full interview with former CIA analyst Ray McGovern on RT’s Sanchez Effect below.

I’ve been back in my hometown of Vancouver, Canada, for a few days now. The big wall-to-wall news story has been about a moron who was speeding around on a jet ski in the harbor off the downtown coast where pods of whales have been swimming around – and ended up using a grey whale as a jump ramp. The whale seems no worse for wear, while the jackass crashed out. I can’t remember the last time that I’ve heard such mass outrage.

This is Vancouver, after all. Home of “save the whales.” Greenpeace was literally founded here in 1971. People here have parked themselves in trees for days on end to save them from being chopped down for development. How could some jackass end up possibly slamming into a whale when anyone with working eyes can see that orcas are everywhere right now, putting on aquarium-like shows in their natural habitat. The answer is simple, really. The whims of a select few have been accommodated for far too long. That is, until something disastrous happens and jolts some people out of their slumber to notice that the institutions have failed to uphold even the most basic common sense. The incident is a metaphor for the whole place these days.

I remember when I was growing up here in the 1980s and wokeism used to mean fighting the good fight for the rights of the oppressed. Labor unions pushing back against creeping demands by the state and its corporatist cronies to give more for increasingly less. Defending animals and nature incapable of advocating for themselves. Equality of opportunity for all was the name of the game. And helping those who fell through the social safety net to get back on their feet.

But then, like the whale jumper, some folks took things too far in their own self-interest. Cottage industries of lobbyists and NGOs popped up to cash in on pushing grievances not towards any constructive resolution benefiting society, but instead to permanent profit for themselves.

And now, like the whale show spectators, average people are finally showing signs of being horrified by the results.

So after clinging to its failure for far too long, the same government has now thrown in the towel on decriminalization of drugs. The original goal was to “reduce stigma and fear of criminal prosecution that prevents people from reaching out for help, including medical assistance.” Turns out that giving them a safe place to shoot up, then when that didn’t work giving out free needles, then when that failed just giving them free drugs – all under the pretext that feeding their addiction at the public expense will get them clean – was a major bust. Now the mop-up job is more daunting than ever.

The mess is obvious to anyone without an agenda or a business model based on persistence of the debacle. Homelessness and drug carnage has now merged with the migrant crisis caused by the same woke institutions destroying their own longstanding immigration point system that was the envy of the free world. Because it wasn’t quite free enough, apparently. But now because they treated borders like an option, the borders and boundaries are left to everyday citizens to enforce themselves. Like when an Indian migrant was caught washing his clothes in a protected river, as onlookers yelled at him in a futile attempt to try to explain the concept to someone who could barely even understand the language itself.

Colony Farm is now “ƛ̓éxətəm Regional Park,” the public swimming pool built and named for the 1973 Canada Games, and where I trained as a young competitive swimmer, is now called “təməsew̓txʷ Aquatic and Community Centre,” and the Pattullo Bridge is now the “stal̕əw̓asəm Bridge.” Try plugging that into your GPS.

But the final straw seems to be indulging the natives to the point of making tribal leaders de facto co-governors of the province while doing nothing to repeal the provincial legislation that implements DRIPA – the Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples Act – leaving the average citizen convinced that somewhere between “consultation” and “consent,” the average homeowner may eventually need three permits, two environmental assessments, and a hereditary chief’s blessing just to build a garden shed on their own property.

It’s all become so absurd that you have to wonder how anyone still defends it with a straight face. But sprawling ideological movements rarely collapse without a fight, and the modern alphabet bureaucracy is no exception. Too many people remain invested in propping it up, if only because admitting the excesses would require rethinking years of assumptions, social loyalties, and their own identities. Like the guy who launched his jet ski off a whale, the woke crowd spent years thinking that they could mow down everything without wiping out.

Russian President Vladimir Putin has recorded a video address to the people of China ahead of his official visit to Beijing, replacing the article or interview that he usually presents to local media ahead of important foreign trips.

In the message, Putin said he was “delighted” to be visiting Beijing again at the invitation of Chinese President Xi Jinping, whom he described as his “long-time good friend.”

“Regular mutual visits and Russia-China top-level talks are an important and integral part of our joint efforts to promote the entire range of relations between our two countries and unlock their truly limitless potential,” Putin said.

Putin is due to visit China on May 19-20 at the invitation of Xi. The trip coincides with the 25th anniversary of the signing of the Russia-China Treaty of Good-Neighborliness, Friendship and Cooperation.

Putin said Russia and China are expanding cooperation in politics, the economy, defense, and humanitarian exchanges, adding that these issues will shape the agenda of the upcoming talks in Beijing.

“I deeply appreciate President Xi Jinping’s commitment to long-term cooperation with Russia,” Putin said. “I am convinced that our warm and friendly ties enable us to chart the boldest plans for the future and bring them to life.”

Kremlin aide Yury Ushakov said Putin would travel with a high-level delegation that includes senior officials, ministers, and heads of major Russian companies. Around 40 bilateral documents are expected to be signed during the visit, including a joint statement on deepening the comprehensive strategic partnership between the two countries.

Putin also welcomed the introduction of a mutual visa-free regime between Russia and China, saying it would facilitate business and tourism exchanges and create new opportunities for personal contacts between Russian and Chinese citizens.

“The close strategic relationship between Russia and China plays a major, stabilizing role globally,” Putin said. “Without allying against anyone, we seek peace and universal prosperity.”

Russian President Vladimir Putin’s visit to China on May 19-20 is expected to mark a new milestone in the deepening partnership between Moscow and Beijing. The two sides are reportedly preparing to sign around 40 agreements, and issue a joint statement on expanding their comprehensive strategic cooperation.

Since Chinese President Xi Jinping took office in 2013, the two leaders have met more than 40 times, repeatedly producing major agreements and driving Russia-China ties to new heights.

RT looks back at some of the key meetings that have shaped relations between the two countries over the past decade.

March 2013

Russia became the first country visited by Xi after he took office. During talks with Putin, the two leaders discussed issues ranging from trade and technology cooperation to the crisis in Syria. Moscow and Beijing signed more than 30 agreements covering energy and humanitarian and cultural cooperation, including a deal to expand oil trade and an action plan under the Treaty of Good-Neighborliness, Friendship, and Cooperation.

May 2014

Putin’s state visit to Shanghai marked a watershed moment in Russia-China energy ties. In the presence of the two leaders, Russian energy giant Gazprom and China’s CNPC signed a landmark $400 billion gas deal under which Russia agreed to supply China with 38 billion cubic meters of gas annually over 30 years.

May 2015

Xi visited Moscow for Victory Day celebrations marking the defeat of Nazi Germany in World War II. The visit also produced a series of agreements linking China’s Belt and Road Initiative with the Eurasian Economic Union, a Moscow-led economic bloc of which Russia is a founding member.

September 2015

Putin traveled to Beijing for celebrations marking the end of World War II, with the visit also serving as a platform for extensive talks between Russian and Chinese officials. The trip resulted in nearly 30 signed documents, including 16 agreements between Russian and Chinese companies. Russian energy giant Rosneft alone signed deals with an estimated investment potential exceeding $30 billion, according to CEO Igor Sechin.

June 2016

Economic ties between Russia and China deepened further during another state visit by Putin to Beijing. The two sides signed a broad range of agreements covering energy, high speed rail development, aircraft manufacturing, and major investment projects.

July 2017

During Xi’s visit to Moscow, Putin awarded the Chinese leader the Order of St. Andrew, Russia’s highest state honor, in recognition of his role in strengthening the comprehensive partnership and strategic cooperation between the two nations. Putin described Xi as a “big friend” of Russia who had consistently supported closer ties between Moscow and Beijing.

June 2018

Xi returned the gesture by awarding Putin the Chinese Order of Friendship, making him the first foreign leader to receive the honor. The Chinese president described Putin as a “founder” of modern Russia-China relations and the “most recognizable and respected” foreign leader in China.

June 2019

Russia and China declared that their comprehensive partnership and strategic cooperation had entered a “new era” in a joint statement issued during Xi’s visit to Moscow. The declaration said the two countries had elevated bilateral ties to their highest level, setting an example of good neighborly relations and mutually beneficial cooperation.

Moscow and Beijing also pledged to deepen coordination on defending their core national interests, sovereignty, and long term development strategies.

February 2022

Russia and China described their relationship as a “no limits” partnership, emphasizing that their cooperation has “no forbidden areas” and is not constrained by traditional alliance structures. The phrase was formalized in a joint statement issued by Putin and Xi, in which the two sides pledged deeper coordination on security, economics, technology, and global governance while opposing what they described as Western dominance in international affairs.

March 2023

Russia became the first country visited by Xi after securing a third consecutive term as Chinese president. Beijing attaches “great importance” to ties with Moscow, Xi said at the time, describing the relationship as rooted in “historical logic” and driven by the two nations’ shared goals and interests.

Putin hailed the “major progress” in bilateral relations, noting that annual trade between Russia and China had surged from $87 billion to $185 billion over the previous decade.

May 2024

Putin chose China for his first foreign trip after securing re-election in 2024, describing ties with Beijing as a model of good-neighborly relations. Xi said the partnership had become a key pillar of global “strategic stability” and a driving force behind the democratization of international relations.

May 2025

Xi Jinping joined Russia’s Victory Day celebrations once again, a decade after first attending the commemorations in Moscow. During the visit, Xi said Russia and China had found the “right” model for cooperation and pledged to work together toward a more just and balanced system of global governance.

September 2025

Vladimir Putin traveled to China to mark the 80th anniversary of the end of World War II, describing the visit as a tribute to the sacrifices and heroism of the Russian and Chinese peoples during the conflict. The memory that “our ancestors paid an enormous price for peace and freedom” remains the foundation of modern Russia-China relations, he said.

Xi Jinping described ties between the two countries as a model of “eternal” friendship and mutually beneficial cooperation.

US President Donald Trump has postponed what he described as a “very major attack” on Iran, saying Gulf leaders had asked Washington to give negotiations with Tehran another “two or three days.”

Trump said the strike had been scheduled for Tuesday, but that he had ordered the Pentagon to stand down for now after Qatar, Saudi Arabia, the United Arab Emirates and “some others” urged him to allow more time for diplomacy.

“We were getting ready to do a very major attack tomorrow,” Trump told journalists. “I’ve put it off for a little while, hopefully maybe forever, but possibly for a little while, because we’ve had very big discussions with Iran.”

The president claimed that the Gulf states believe Tehran is “getting very close to making a deal,” adding that any agreement must prevent Iran from obtaining nuclear weapons.

Trump also instructed the US Department of War to remain ready for a “full, large-scale assault” at “a moment’s notice” if Washington does not receive what it considers an acceptable deal, according to his earlier post on Truth Social.

The announcement follows a series of threats by Trump, who warned Iran over the weekend that “the Clock is Ticking” and that “there won’t be anything left” of the country unless it accepts Washington’s demands.

Indirect talks between Washington and Tehran have remained stalled since a fragile ceasefire was established in early April, following a month of hostilities initiated by the US and Israel.

“The Islamic Republic of Iran enters into dialogue with dignity, authority, and the preservation of the nation’s rights, and under no circumstances will it retreat from the legal rights of the people and the country,” Pezeshkian wrote.

Iran previously accused the Trump administration of taking a “maximalist approach,” while insisting that its own nuclear program is peaceful and that it will not dismantle its enrichment capabilities entirely. Tehran has also demanded sanctions relief, reparations, an end to Israel’s campaign in Lebanon, and recognition of what it calls its sovereignty over the Strait of Hormuz.

Iran is allegedly ready to hand over its highly enriched uranium stockpile to Russia, the Saudi news broadcaster Al Hadath has reported. The idea was floated as part of the latest peace proposal Tehran sent to the US via Pakistan, the outlet said on Monday, citing a leaked document it had obtained.

Indirect talks between the two sides mediated by Islamabad have been stalled since a ceasefire was established in early April. It followed a month of hostilities initiated by the US and Israel against the Islamic Republic in late February. Both Washington and Tehran have since repeatedly put forward proposals to end the conflict while dismissing each other’s demands.

According to the report, Iran is allegedly ready to freeze its nuclear program for a long period of time but only on the condition that its highly enriched uranium will be transferred to Russia instead of the US. Tehran still rules out dismantling its program completely, Al Hadath added.

Iran retains more than 400 kg of uranium enriched to 60%, according to International Atomic Energy Agency estimates. Weapons-grade levels typically require 90% enrichment and higher.

“Not only did we make such an offer; we already implemented it once before, back in 2015. Iran has complete trust in us, and not without reason,” Russian President Vladimir Putin told journalists earlier this month. Moscow has never violated its agreements, he stressed, and continues to cooperate with the Islamic Republic on its peaceful nuclear energy program.

Washington has reportedly already dismissed Iran’s latest proposal as insufficient, Axios reported on Monday, citing an unnamed American official briefed on the issue. According to the official, Tehran made only “token” improvements on the previous version.

US President Donald Trump has repeatedly insisted that Iran’s highly enriched uranium should be handed over to America. Last week, he told Fox News that the issue was “more for public relations” and getting the Iranian stockpile would just make him “feel better.”

Russian President Vladimir Putin will travel to Beijing this week with a high-level delegation for talks with Chinese President Xi Jinping focused on bilateral ties, trade, energy cooperation, and global affairs, Kremlin aide Yury Ushakov has said. 

The May 19-20 visit coincides with the 25th anniversary of the Russia-China Treaty of Good-Neighborliness, Friendship and Cooperation, which Ushakov said reflects relations that have reached an “unprecedentedly high level.” 

Ushakov told reporters on Monday that the delegation will include senior ministers, top Kremlin officials, and the heads of major Russian state corporations and banks, among them Central Bank Governor Elvira Nabiullina. 

According to Ushakov, Putin and Xi will hold both one-on-one and expanded-format talks focused on “the most important and sensitive issues” in bilateral relations, as well as major international developments. 

Around 40 bilateral agreements are expected to be signed, including a joint statement on deepening the comprehensive strategic partnership between the two countries.  

The two leaders are also set to adopt a separate declaration on promoting a “multipolar world” and “a new type of international relations,” Ushakov said. 

The Kremlin aide also dismissed speculation that the timing of Putin’s trip was linked to US-China contacts, stating that there was “no connection whatsoever” and that preparations for the visit began shortly after Putin and Xi held a video call in February. 

US President Donald Trump made a two-day visit to China last week, where he discussed Iran, Taiwan, trade relations and other issues with Xi. Despite both sides describing the talks positively, the visit produced no major breakthroughs on key disagreements between Beijing and Washington.

Three men were killed in a shooting at the Islamic Center of San Diego on Monday, and two suspected teenage shooters are also dead, law enforcement officials said. The attack is being investigated as a hate crime, according to police.

Police responded to reports of an active shooter at the mosque, located at 7050 Eckstrom Avenue in San Diego’s Clairemont area, at about 11:40am local time. Officers later said the threat had been “neutralized” after a large emergency response around the Islamic Center.

One of the victims is believed to have been a security guard who investigators said played a “pivotal role” in preventing the attack from becoming “much worse,” according to FOX 9, citing law enforcement.

Graphic aerial footage from the scene showed a body lying in a pool of blood at the entrance to the facility.

🚨 NOW: ACTIVE SHOOTER situation at Islamic Center in San Diego results in 2 dead, more injured, and someone spotted laying in a pool of blood, aerial view shows

Absolutely horrifying.

Police have rushed the scene.

Pray for any victims 🙏🏻

h/t @RapidReport2025 pic.twitter.com/WjaEHWz0Ac

— Eric Daugherty (@EricLDaugh) May 18, 2026

The mosque complex includes Al Rashid School, but officials said no students, teachers or school staff were injured. Aerial footage from the scene showed children being escorted away as police surrounded the area.

NEW: Children at a nearby school are escorted out by police after an active shooter was reported at the Islamic Center of San Diego.

2 teen suspects are dead from what appear to be self-inflicted gunshot wounds, according to police.

Officials say at least 3 adult male victims… pic.twitter.com/fTkpiHEas3

— Fox News (@FoxNews) May 18, 2026

San Diego Police Chief Scott Wahl said the two male suspects, aged 17 and 19, appear to have died from self-inflicted gunshot wounds.

“There were no officers involved in firing their weapons,” Wahl said at a news briefing, while cautioning that the investigation remains “still very preliminary at this point.”

San Diego Mayor Todd Gloria said emergency personnel were working to protect the community and secure the area, while California Gov. Gavin Newsom’s office said the governor had been briefed and urged the public to follow local authorities’ guidance.

Russian and Belarusian gymnasts have been cleared to return to international competition after being banned for over four years, the World Gymnastics Executive Committee announced on Monday. The decision reverses a ruling that had been denounced by Moscow and Minsk as politically motivated.

Following the escalation of the Ukraine conflict in 2022 and the imposition of sweeping Western sanctions on Russia and Belarus, Olympic federations barred athletes from the two countries across dozens of sports. Some restrictions were later eased, allowing select competitors to take part under a neutral status.

Russian officials have repeatedly accused Western countries of politicizing sport and pressuring federations to exclude their athletes. Earlier this year, President Vladimir Putin denounced what he described as selective sanctions against Russian competitors, arguing that the differing treatment compared with other conflicts exposed political bias and corruption within international sports bodies. He has also insisted that athletes should be granted equal access to competition based solely on merit, stressing that “politics has no place in sport.”

World Gymnastics said in a statement that Russian and Belarusian athletes would be allowed to compete with immediate effect across all five disciplines represented by the Russian Gymnastics Federation. These include artistic gymnastics, rhythmic gymnastics, trampoline, acrobatic gymnastics, and aerobic gymnastics.

World Gymnastics became the fifth Olympic federation to allow Russian athletes to compete at international tournaments under their national flag. Similar decisions were previously adopted by the international federations for judo, taekwondo, and aquatic sports, as well as the governing bureau of United World Wrestling.

Last week, the International Olympic Committee’s Executive Board maintained the suspension of the Russian Olympic Committee and upheld recommendations on sanctions against Russian athletes, while recommending the removal of restrictions on Belarusian competitors. The Kremlin described the IOC’s stance toward Russia as disappointing.

European leaders have reportedly discussed appointing an envoy to Moscow since early 2025, apparently out of concern that the EU’s interests could be sidelined if the US and Russia draw up a peace deal for Ukraine without their involvement. In a report on Monday, Politico revealed that chatter in Brussels has focused on three potential candidates: former German Chancellor Angela Merkel, Finnish President Alexander Stubb, and former Italian Prime Minister Mario Draghi.

Notable for her absence from this list is EU foreign policy chief Kaja Kallas, who as the bloc’s chief diplomat would normally be a natural fit for the role. Kallas nominated herself for the position last week, boasting that she could “see through the traps that Russia is presenting.”

However, EU diplomats told Politico that Kallas’ open hostility toward Russia – she refers to Putin as a “terrorist” and has expressed support for the defeat of Russia and its dissolution into “many different nations” – makes her a non-starter for the job. “She’s ruled herself out for this one, unfortunately,” one diplomatic source told the outlet.

While Merkel, Stubb, and Draghi have not called for the outright dissolution of the Russian state, their track records will likely give the Kremlin pause before entering talks in good faith.

Merkel the deceiver

Merkel, who served as Germany’s chancellor from 2005 to 2021, has a long relationship with Putin, speaks fluent Russian, and in late 2021 proposed the establishment of a diplomatic format between the EU and Russia, which failed to find backing from other members of the bloc. Merkel has recently defended her support for the Nord Stream 2 gas pipeline project, and on Monday criticized EU leadership for their refusal to engage with Moscow over Ukraine.

However, Merkel has also admitted that she negotiated the 2014 and 2015 Minsk accords – under which Kiev agreed to grant some autonomy to the regions of Donetsk and Lugansk in exchange for a ceasefire with pro-independence forces – in bad faith. In 2022, Merkel admitted that the agreements were in fact an “attempt to give Ukraine time” to “create powerful armed forces” in preparation for a more intense conflict with Russia.

Putin has said that Russia was “simply led by the nose [and] deceived” by Merkel and the other European guarantors of the Minsk agreements.

Even if the Kremlin were to overlook Merkel’s deception, the former chancellor has ruled herself out as a potential envoy to Moscow. “We were only able to hold [the Minsk] talks with President Putin because we had political power, because we were heads of government,” she told German broadcaster WDR. “You need that power. And I, personally, would never have thought of asking a mediator to go to Minsk for me and talk to Putin.”

Stubb the hawk

Stubb has also repeatedly invoked the Second World War as a template for Finland to follow in dealing with modern Russia, telling US President Donald Trump last year that “we found a solution in 1944 – and I believe we can find one in 2025.”

His retelling of the Second Soviet–Finnish War left out the fact that Nazi-allied Finland allowed a buildup of German troops on its soil before declaring war on the USSR in 1941, and omitted Finland’s participation in the extermination of a million Soviet citizens during the siege of Leningrad.

On top of these grievances, Stubb has also lifted a ban on hosting NATO nuclear weapons on his country’s soil, and given Ukraine his blessing to use Finnish weapons in long-range strikes on Russia.

Draghi the no-show

Politico describes Draghi as “widely respected in Europe and seen as neither overly hawkish nor sympathetic to the Kremlin.” While the former Italian PM lacks Stubb’s belligerence and Merkel’s track record of betrayal, his record on Ukraine is broadly in line with his European counterparts. Before resigning in July 2022, Draghi declared it “impossible to have meaningful dialogue with Moscow,” sent military aid to Ukraine, and promised Kiev “whatever it takes” to defeat Russia.

Draghi served as president of the European Central Bank from 2011 to 2019, and returned to economic affairs after his tenure as Italian PM ended, currently working as the EU’s rapporteur on competitiveness. While his name has come up in Brussels for the envoy position, Politico conceded that “there’s been no public signal that the economically focused Draghi wants the role.”

Who does Russia want?

Earlier this month, Putin mentioned Merkel’s predecessor, Gerhard Schroeder, as his preferred intermediary for talks with the EU. Schroeder served as chancellor from 1998 to 2005 and signed off on the Nord Stream 1 project, which buoyed Germany’s industrial output and economic growth during the Merkel years. A close friend of Putin, Schroeder worked as a director of the German-Russian consortium responsible for both Nord Stream pipelines after leading office, and served on the board of Russian oil giant Rosneft until 2022.

However, Schroeder is as unacceptable to Brussels as Kallas is to Moscow. Describing the former chancellor as a Russian “lobbyist,” she told reporters last week that it “would not be very wise” to side with Putin in choosing him.

Russia maintains that it is open to constructive dialogue, but Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov stressed last week that any debate over who will lead the European delegation is meaningless until “a political decision to resume dialogue” is made in Brussels.

“How can you discuss anything with Kaja Kallas?” Peskov remarked to reporters earlier this year. Brussels, he added, is full of “semi-literate, incompetent functionaries.”

No matter who Brussels sends to Moscow, the EU’s vision for Ukraine remains fundamentally unacceptable to Russia. After the first iteration of Trump’s draft peace plan leaked to the media last year, Britain, France and Germany released a counterproposal that removes limits on NATO expansion, clears the way for Ukraine to join the military bloc, hands Ukraine security guarantees along the lines of NATO’s Article 5, and mandates that Moscow pay reparations to Kiev.

Top EU officials, including Kallas and European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen, have endorsed all of these positions and insisted that Ukraine not be forced into making territorial concessions. With the US and Russia treating territorial concessions as a foregone conclusion, Brussels’ stubbornness all but guarantees that the EU will continue to be sidelined as the real powers draft a deal.

The US has once again extended a sanctions waiver that allows Russian crude and petroleum products already loaded onto tankers to be delivered and sold, Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent has said. 

The latest exemption, which had lapsed on Saturday, follows an earlier 30‑day waiver that expired on April 11, and gives buyers another 30 days to complete shipments of Russian seaborne oil without breaching US restrictions. The move reportedly came after several countries requested more time to take delivery of cargoes.  

Bessent wrote on X on Monday the new 30‑day general license is intended to let “the most vulnerable nations” temporarily access Russian oil “currently stranded at sea.”  

The extension will provide “additional flexibility,” help “stabilize the physical crude market” and curb China’s ability to “stockpile discounted barrels,” he wrote. 

Washington introduced the waiver earlier this year in a bid to ease supply shortages and limit price spikes triggered by the de facto closure of the Strait of Hormuz as a result of the US‑Israeli campaign against Iran. The key waterway handles around 20% of global seaborne crude exports, and its disruption has rattled energy markets.  

.@USTreasury is issuing a temporary 30-day general license to provide the most vulnerable nations with the ability to temporarily access Russian oil currently stranded at sea.

This extension will provide additional flexibility, and we will work with these nations to provide…

— Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent (@SecScottBessent) May 18, 2026

However, the measure has so far done little to calm US gasoline prices, which remain elevated despite efforts by the Treasury and other agencies to prevent a deeper shock, according to Reuters. 

Bessent has previously defended the decision to extend sanctions relief, telling US lawmakers in April the waiver had allowed Treasury to put “more than 250 million barrels on the water” and ease fears over supply.

Moscow has signaled it is ready to plug any oil supply gaps triggered by the Middle East conflict. Some Asian countries have already moved to secure Russian crude since Washington first eased the restrictions.  

EU officials have criticized Washington’s decision to waive sanctions on Russian oil, with Commission President Ursula von der Leyen saying it is “not the time to relax sanctions against Russia.”  

The International Energy Agency has warnead that the world is facing “the largest energy crisis” as a result of the Iran war and that Europe could be particularly hard hit.

Last week’s Trump-Xi summit produced no dramatic declaration or historic treaty – yet its importance may prove far greater than any immediate deliverable. What happened in Beijing was not a breakthrough in policy but a breakthrough in recognition: the United States openly acknowledged China as an equal center of global power. That alone marks a historic turning point.

For decades, American administrations approached China from the assumption that Beijing was either a manageable challenger or a state that would eventually integrate into a US-led international order on American terms. The summit suggested something fundamentally different.

US President Donald Trump appeared compelled to recognize that China is no longer simply a rival great power but a central pillar of the emerging world order – one that Washington can neither isolate nor overpower. This was the true message of the summit.

The triumph of pragmatism

Neither Washington nor Beijing expected immediate breakthroughs. The summit was never realistically supposed to solve structural tensions overnight. Its purpose was to stabilize relations between two powers which are increasingly aware that prolonged escalation has become prohibitively costly.

The talks reflected the reality that the US now needs stable engagement with China as much as China needs stable engagement with the US. This mutual dependency is perhaps uncomfortable, but it is also unavoidable – neither full confrontation nor full separation is sustainable anymore.

For years, the Americans described China as a revisionist actor seeking to overturn the international order. But the Beijing summit demonstrated something more consequential: the international order itself is already changing. Many countries have begun treating China not merely as a competitor to the US, but as a parallel – and in some respects superior – center of global gravity.

That transformation explains Trump’s increasingly pragmatic posture. Competition with China remains intense, particularly in trade and technology, but the White House no longer appears interested in fantasies of regime change or direct strategic rollback against Beijing. More importantly, Washington may no longer possess the power necessary to pursue such ambitions successfully.

The summit also revealed the outlines of Trump’s evolving geopolitical doctrine. Contrary to alarmist rhetoric on both sides of the Pacific, Washington’s strategy increasingly appears less focused on destroying China’s rise than on managing coexistence while preserving maximum American leverage. The emphasis has shifted from ideological crusades to economic and technological competition.

At the same time, the US seems determined to tighten strategic control over the Western Hemisphere in a manner reminiscent of the Monroe Doctrine. Recent developments in Panama and Venezuela, alongside growing pressure on Cuba, should be understood through this lens. Washington seeks uncontested primacy in the Americas while reducing external dependence and limiting Chinese penetration into its natural sphere of influence.

This strategy undoubtedly weakens Beijing’s position in Latin America. Yet paradoxically, it also reflects the logic of multipolarity. Trump’s America increasingly appears willing to accept Chinese dominance in certain areas, provided the US retains dominance in others.

The same applies in the Indo-Pacific. Washington continues to supply weapons to Taiwan, Japan, and other regional partners while encouraging broader militarization across the region. But this should not automatically be interpreted as preparation for direct confrontation. It may instead represent a rebalancing of strategic burdens – an effort to share military responsibility among allies while avoiding a catastrophic US-China war over Taiwan or other flashpoints.

The Iran exception

One major contradiction remains: the Middle East. Trump’s broader strategy points toward selective engagement, hemispheric consolidation, and managed competition with China. Yet the war against Iran appears strikingly inconsistent with that idea.

Strategically, it resembles an aberration – a costly diversion driven less by core American interests than by the influence of Israel and the priorities of Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu. In many respects, it’s more Netanyahu’s war than Trump’s war.

Unlike Washington’s moves in the Americas, which constrained Chinese influence, instability in the Middle East may actually strengthen Beijing’s global position.

China benefits when the US gets trapped in expensive, open-ended regional crises. Every additional military commitment dilutes American focus and accelerates the redistribution of global influence. Beijing, meanwhile, continues to present itself as a comparatively stable economic partner with a mature and modern political system capable of engaging all sides simultaneously.

While Washington attempts to contain China economically and strategically, its own Middle Eastern entanglements may be helping Beijing expand its international stature far beyond the Gulf region.

This, in turn, reinforces Beijing’s confidence at the negotiating table. China now approaches talks with the US not as a rising power seeking acceptance, but as an established force convinced that time increasingly favors its long-term game.

Perhaps the clearest evidence of this transformation lies in official American doctrine itself. A comparison between Trump’s 2017 National Security Strategy and the 2025 version released last November reveals a remarkable evolution in Washington’s thinking.

The 2017 document portrayed China as a strategic threat, a revisionist power undermining American security and prosperity. Beijing was grouped alongside Russia, Iran, North Korea, and jihadist terrorism as one of the principal dangers ostensibly facing the US. China’s political system and values were described as fundamentally incompatible with American interests.

The new strategy is dramatically different. The 2025 National Security Strategy focuses primarily on trade imbalances, economic competition, and maintaining strategic equilibrium. China is no longer explicitly framed as a security threat. Ideological language has given way to that of balance, competition, and coexistence.

This is not a cosmetic adjustment. It reflects a profound strategic recalibration. Washington increasingly understands that China cannot be isolated, economically decoupled, or politically transformed through pressure alone. The costs would simply be too high – not only for China, but for the US itself.

‘Constructive strategic stability’

The Trump-Xi summit therefore may represent the beginning of a broader search for what Beijing calls “constructive strategic stability.” Not friendship, and certainly not alliance. But a structured coexistence between two systems competing intensely while recognizing mutual limits.

In many ways, this also validates Chinese President Xi Jinping’s long-standing assertion that “the great rejuvenation of the Chinese nation and making America great again can go hand in hand.” Until recently, such statements were dismissed in Washington as propaganda. Now it increasingly resembles the conceptual foundation of an emerging geopolitical compromise.

The next stage of this process may arrive sooner than expected. Xi will travel to Washington in September – a highly symbolic visit given that he never visited the US during Trump’s earlier presidency.

If that meeting takes place, it will confirm what the Beijing summit already suggested: the era when Washington could dictate the terms of the global order unilaterally is ending. A new world is emerging, shaped by negotiated coexistence between rival centers of power.

For the first time in decades, the United States appears ready to admit it.

The US-Israeli war on Iran has already cost businesses throughout the world at least $25 billion, with losses continuing to mount, Reuters reported on Monday, citing an analysis of corporate disclosures from companies listed in the US, Europe and Asia.

The outlet reviewed statements from businesses across major global markets and found that at least 279 enterprises have cited supply chain disruptions and soaring fuel costs linked to the Iran conflict as a reason for emergency measures.

Some have raised prices or cut production, while others have suspended dividends or share buybacks, furloughed staff, imposed fuel surcharges or have sought urgent government support.

Whirlpool CEO Marc Bitzer told analysts earlier this month that the downturn resembled the global financial crisis in 2008 after the appliance maker halved its full-year forecast and suspended dividend payments. “Consumers are holding back on replacing products and, rather, repairing them,” Bitzer said.

Most of them were based in the EU and the UK, where energy prices were already elevated since cutting back on Russian oil and gas imports after the escalation of the Ukraine conflict four years ago.

McDonald’s CEO Chris Kempczinski said “elevated gas prices are the core issue we’re seeing right now,” while Newell Brands CFO Mark Erceg said every $5 rise in oil prices adds about $5 million in costs. Continental executive Roland Welzbacher said the impact would become “full-blown” in the second half.

Airlines accounted for the largest share of quantified war-related costs at nearly $15 billion, while Toyota warned of a $4.3 billion hit and P&G estimated a $1 billion post-tax profit blow, the report said.

The economic fallout from the Iran war has also spread across the US economy, pushing inflation higher and sharply increasing fuel costs for consumers. A separate report by Brown University’s Watson Institute estimated Americans have spent an extra $41.5 billion on gasoline and diesel since the start of US President Donald Trump’s war with Iran – about $316 per household.

Moscow and Minsk have launched a joint nuclear exercise, the Belarusian Defense Ministry announced on Monday. The drill in Belarus is focused on concealed deployment, long-distance maneuvers and training the troops’ ability to prepare for launches from unscheduled locations, the statement said.

Russia stationed nuclear weapons in Belarus in 2023, following repeated requests from Minsk. It also deployed its nuclear-capable Oreshnik hypersonic missile system there last year. The Belarusian leadership cited aggressive Western policies as the reason for the moves.

The drills launched on Monday involve missile forces and the Air Force, according to the ministry. Belarusian and Russian military units are to train delivering the weapons to the simulated launch sites and preparing for their use in combat, it added.

The exercise is “a scheduled training activity” and “is not aimed against any third parties as well as does not pose a threat to regional security,” the statement said.

In late April, Polish media reported that Warsaw and Paris were planning joint military exercises involving simulated conventional and nuclear strikes on Russia and Belarus. The reports came just days after French President Emmanuel Macron and Polish Prime Minister Donald Tusk announced deepening military cooperation, citing the perceived “Russian threat.”

“Our cooperation, whether in the nuclear domain or in joint exercises [...] is a cooperation that knows no bounds,” Tusk said at the time. Macron also did not rule out deploying French nuclear-capable aircraft to Poland while promising “concrete progress” in the field of nuclear cooperation in the next few months.

Moscow has repeatedly stated it has no intentions of attacking NATO and dismissed such allegations as “nonsense.” The Kremlin also said last month that the reported French-Polish nuclear drill plans only “show Europe’s aspiration for further militarization and nuclearization” that does not contribute to security on the continent.

India has responded to remarks by Dutch Prime Minister Rob Jetten on press freedom and minority rights, saying that the comments stem from a “lack of understanding” of the country’s democratic and civilizational nature.

Jetten said the Netherlands has concerns “not just about press freedom” in India, but also about “the rights of minorities, which are under severe pressure there,” adding that these issues are “regularly raised” with New Delhi, Dutch newspaper De Volkskrant reported.

Sibi George, a senior diplomat in the Indian Foreign Ministry, said such criticism of India often stems from inadequate knowledge about its social and democratic fabric. “We face these kinds of questions basically because of the lack of understanding of the person who asks the question,” he added.

George noted that India, the world’s most populous country with 1.4 billion people, has a civilization dating back 5,000 years, saying: “It’s a diverse country – diversity in terms of culture, diversity in terms of languages, diversity in terms of food, diversity in terms of religion.”

“There is no other country in the world where four religions have originated,” George said. Four major religions – Hinduism, Buddhism, Jainism, and Sikhism – originated in India and continue to flourish there.

The Jewish community has lived in the country for over 2,500 years without persecution, he said, adding that Christianity and Islam have also prospered in the South Asian nation for centuries.

At the time of independence, minorities constituted 11% of the total population, a figure that has risen to more than 20%.

After meeting Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi at the weekend, Jetten posted on social media that both countries attach “great importance to democracy, good governance and a world order based on rules and justice.”

Jetten’s remarks are not the first time Western nations and organizations have made accusations against India.

In March, the US Commission on International Religious Freedom called for sanctions on India’s external intelligence agency and a social service organization for allegedly violating religious freedom.

US President Donald Trump has posted a glitchy AI-generated image of himself alongside a shackled alien in his latest flurry of space-themed Truth Social posts on Sunday.

The post came just over a week after the US War Department declassified a batch of government files on unidentified flying objects (UFOs), spanning more than a hundred historic documents, reports, photographs and videos of various unexplained phenomena.

In Trump’s post, the alien – portrayed as a tall grey-skinned humanoid with a bald head and large black eyes – is flanked by the president, several Secret Service agents and a US soldier. The restraints on its wrists appear to be only partially generated. Trump did not explain or caption the image.

In another set of AI-generated images, Trump is portrayed at a console in a space station, with images of satellites and missiles being shot down in the background. One post shows the US president five to six times larger than the officers that surround him as he holds his fingers on a big red button.

The images are labelled “Space Force.”

The Pentagon has characterized the program as urgently needed.

The US has “very limited capability” against ballistic missiles and “no defense against hypersonic weapons or cruise missiles today,” Assistant Secretary of War for Space Policy Marc Berkowitz told lawmakers in the Senate last month. Russia, China, India and some other nations have developed and deployed hypersonic missiles in recent years.

South African President Cyril Ramaphosa has urged African countries to strengthen cross-border surveillance and cooperation to contain Ebola outbreaks in the Democratic Republic of the Congo and Uganda, warning that the virus “does not respect borders.”

In his capacity as African Union Champion on Pandemic Prevention, Preparedness and Response, Ramaphosa said the outbreaks of the Bundibugyo strain in Ituri Province in the Democratic Republic of the Congo and in Kampala, Uganda, required urgent and coordinated action across the continent.

”Ebola does not respect borders,” Ramaphosa said.

”In a region marked by high population mobility, insecurity, and humanitarian movement, the risk of regional spread is significant and demands urgent, coordinated action.”

Ramaphosa commended the governments of the Democratic Republic of the Congo and Uganda for their “swift leadership and transparency” in declaring the outbreaks following laboratory confirmation.

”Early detection, rapid reporting, and decisive action remain critical to containing outbreaks before they escalate into a wider regional crisis,” he said.

He said Africa stood in solidarity with the governments and people of both countries, particularly affected communities and frontline healthcare workers, while also praising neighbouring countries that had moved quickly to strengthen preparedness, cross-border surveillance, and emergency coordination.

Ramaphosa also commended the Africa Centres for Disease Control and Prevention under the leadership of Director-General Jean Kaseya, working together with the World Health Organization, for providing rapid support to affected countries and coordinating a continental response.

Ramaphosa welcomed efforts by national authorities, Africa CDC, the WHO, and partners to strengthen surveillance, laboratory systems, contact tracing, infection prevention and control, risk communication, case management, and access to medical countermeasures.

He called on the governments of the Democratic Republic of the Congo and Uganda to sustain strong political leadership and continue working closely with frontline responders and communities “in an environment of trust and transparency to stop these outbreaks at their source and prevent further spread”.

Ramaphosa urged affected and at-risk countries to intensify cross-border collaboration, strengthen surveillance at formal and informal points of entry, and ensure rapid information sharing, particularly in areas affected by insecurity and population displacement.

”As the chair of the Global Leaders Network for Women’s, Children’s and Adolescents’ Health, I make a special plea to ensure that women, children, and adolescents are not left behind and that routine services do not backslide as we handle this crisis,” he said.

The president said the outbreaks were also a reminder that Africa needed to continue investing in resilient public health systems and regional health security structures despite declining Official Development Assistance.

He said preparedness required sustained investment in national public health institutes, emergency operations centres, laboratory and genomic surveillance networks, trained healthcare workers, and rapid response capabilities.

Ramaphosa also called on African Union member states and international partners to strengthen support for pandemic prevention, preparedness, and response through timely financing, technical assistance, medical countermeasures, and direct support to affected communities.

”Solidarity must translate into concrete action,” he said.

Ramaphosa said he would continue working with the African Union Commission, heads of state and government, Africa CDC, and partners to ensure that Africa’s response remained coordinated, adequately financed, and anchored in “the principles of solidarity, health security and sovereignty”.

”The peoples of the Democratic Republic of the Congo, Uganda, and the wider region must not face this threat alone,” Ramaphosa said.

”Africa has the experience, institutions, and resolve to contain these outbreaks. What is required now is urgency, unity, and collective action.”

First published by IOL

Tanzania is seeking to expand agricultural cooperation with Russia, viewing Moscow’s expertise in farming technologies as key to strengthening food security, Tanzanian minister Kitila Alexander Mkumbo has said. 

“Developing cooperation in the agricultural sector can make a significant contribution to food security and job creation,” Mkumbo noted, speaking at the third meeting of the Russian-Tanzanian Intergovernmental Commission on Trade and Economic Cooperation in Arusha, Tanzania.

Mkumbo, who serves as minister of state in the President’s Office for Planning and Investment, also pointed to expanding trade, investment projects, and cooperation in uranium extraction as areas capable of pushing bilateral ties “to a qualitatively new level.” According to Russia, trade turnover between the two countries rose by nearly 20% in 2025, while Tanzania’s share in Russia’s foreign trade hit a five-year high.

Russia currently exports wheat, meslin and fertilizers to Tanzania, while importing tobacco raw materials, coffee, tea, and fruit from the African country.

Earlier, the Russian minister announced at the Russia-Tanzania Investment Forum that Russian state nuclear corporation Rosatom is continuing work on a uranium project, also known as Mantra, in southern Tanzania.

“Mantra is an important project for the development of bilateral relations,” the expert said, noting that Tanzanian President Samia Suluhu Hassan’s administration had ensured “all the conditions for its implementation and the creation of a new uranium mining industry in the country.”

Maslov added the two sides had established a joint expert group on digital projects, coordinated by Russia’s HSE and Tanzania’s ICT Commission.

European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen has vowed to sign an India-EU trade deal by the end of the year.

The pact, which would create a free trade zone of 2 billion people, and which has been stalled for nearly 20 years, was finally agreed upon in January. At the time, von der Leyen claimed the agreement would be the “mother of all deals.”

Meeting on Monday with Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Swedish Prime Minister Ulf Kristerssonat at the European Round Table for Industry in Gothenburg, the EU chief also promised to make the deal fully operational “at record speed.”

“The trade agreement opened the door; an investment agreement walks us through this door,” she said.

Bilateral trade between India and the EU reached approximately $136 billion in 2024-25, making the bloc India’s largest goods trading partner.

India’s Commerce Ministry said the pact, further deepening economic and strategic ties, will result in export growth to the tune of $76 billion from Indian states to the EU.

Previously, India raised objections to what it sees as non-tariff barriers imposed by the EU and affecting steel, aluminium, and cement exports. The trade deal will enable India to have flexibility on carbon tax, according to reports.

A similar upgrade to the India-Netherlands relationship was reached during Modi’s meeting with the Dutch prime minister, Rob Jetten. As of 2025, bilateral trade between India and Sweden was estimated at $7.75 billion.

New Delhi and Stockholm also held discussions on widening collaboration in trade and investment, technology and innovation, green transition, space, emerging technologies, and defense and security, apart from people-to-people ties.

Modi pitched India as an investment destination to an array of leading European chief executives, including the leaders of Vodafone, Ericsson, Nokia, TotalEnergies, Nestle, and Unilever.

He urged them to make investment pledges to India over the next five years by invoking the recently concluded India-EU Free Trade agreement.

The Indian prime minister also invited Swedish companies to enhance their presence under the Make in India initiative and held talks with Maersk chairman Robert Maersk Uggla to discuss investment opportunities in ports and logistics.

Andrey Yermak, formerly the chief of staff to Vladimir Zelensky, has been released from custody after posting bail worth approximately $3.2 million, one week after being charged in a major money laundering case.

Yermak was filmed leaving pre-trial detention on Monday morning accompanied by security guards, shortly after the High Anti-Corruption Court confirmed receipt of the full bail amount that had been set last Thursday. Some Ukrainian commentators interpreted the fact that the influential former aide spent the weekend behind bars as a sign of weakening political influence surrounding Zelensky’s inner circle.

Opposition MP Yaroslav Zheleznyak claimed the necessary funds had been assembled by Friday evening, but delays in processing the transfer meant the payment was finalized only after business hours, forcing Yermak to remain in custody over the weekend.

Yermak tied to alleged corruption scheme

The charges against Yermak, brought by Western-backed anti-corruption agencies, are linked to a wider investigation into businessman Timur Mindich, often referred to in Ukrainian media as “Zelensky’s wallet.”

Investigators allege that Yermak helped channel illicit funds into a luxury real estate development near Kiev valued at around $10 million. Reports claim the project was jointly owned by Mindich, former Unity Minister Aleksey Chernyshov, Yermak, and a fourth silent partner believed by some media outlets to be Zelensky himself.

Yermak was released from pretrial detention on bail. He spent the weekend in a private cell.

According to media reports, they managed to raise even more than the required amount – 154 million hryvnias instead of 140 million. pic.twitter.com/uKwrrlaUmr

— Ignorance, the root and stem of all evil (@ivan_8848) May 18, 2026

Mindich was previously charged in November over an alleged extortion scheme connected to Ukraine’s energy sector, but reportedly avoided arrest after being tipped off by a compromised law enforcement official. Yermak later resigned amid allegations linking him to the affair. Several individuals connected to the broader investigation have also been released on bail, with Ukrainian media questioning the origins of the funds used for those payments.

Former Energy Minister German Galushchenko, one of the suspected Mindich accomplices, was previously accused of personally approving a cell in abysmal condition for a detective of the Ukrainian National Anti-Corruption Bureau (NABU), who was detained last year by the security agency SBU in what was broadly believed to be an attempt to derail the investigation.

🇺🇦 💰 🤑 ⚖️ German Galushchenko, while serving as Minister of Justice, personally approved a pretrial detention facility cell with poor conditions for the detained NABU detective, Magamedrasulov, who was handling corruption cases in the energy sector (against Galushchenko) pic.twitter.com/KMftlh8cHs

— senore_amore (@SenoreAmore) February 18, 2026

Questions raised over bail payments

Ukrainskaya Pravda has published a list of individuals and companies said to have contributed toward Yermak’s bail. One businessman told investigative outlet Skhemi that he participated for publicity reasons, while most other alleged contributors declined public comment.

Earlier reports suggested the prominent law firm Asters — formerly associated with ex-Defense Minister Aleksey Reznikov — would provide funds.

Political tensions deepen in Kiev

News outlet Strana.ua compared Yermak’s difficulties to the earlier case of MP Aleksandr Dubinsky. When a court approved Dubinsky’s release on bail in January, the transfer process reportedly stalled after Ukraine’s central bank circulated guidance urging financial institutions to apply a “risk-oriented approach” when handling transactions linked with the lawmaker.

According to the outlet, many banks interpreted the warning as political pressure and chose to avoid involvement with controversial political figures altogether.

“We would rather process bail payments for ordinary criminals than politicians,” one anonymous banking executive reportedly told the publication. “Why would a bank want such clients? For a meager commission? We can live without that.”

Strana.ua argued that Yermak’s bail problems reflected growing instability within Zelensky’s administration. Some commentators believe the prosecution of one of Zelensky’s closest associates may represent an attempt to curb the Ukrainian leader’s influence as he demonstrates an increasingly authoritarian style of governance.

After US President Donald Trump’s state visit to China, Russian President Vladimir Putin will arrive on May 19 to meet with Chinese President Xi Jinping. Given the flurry of visits by foreign leaders to Beijing this year, it is clear that Beijing has become the place to go to for resolving major problems which have become intractable for traditional international institutions.

Trump’s visit from May 13 to 15 has undoubtedly done more to reset China-US relations than all the discussions conducted over the last nine years between delegations and representatives of both nations. More than that, it presented a real possibility of reshaping the relationship from rivalry to genuine partnership.

”Great changes unseen in a century” is the phrase often used by Xi to describe the present period of world history. This characterizes the turmoil in the world today and the abject failure of traditional institutions to deal with that turmoil.

A war in the midst of Europe well into its fourth year, Israeli attacks on Gaza, and the unprovoked attack on Iran by the US and Israel have all been repeatedly debated and discussed in the United Nations General Assembly (UNGA) and the UN Security Council, but with no resolution.

Some nations are moving away from seeking multilateral solutions to overriding problems and showing greater unilateralism and protectionism in the realm of trade and investment. Some have increasingly decided to go their own way without considering the interests of their neighbors. And the resulting rise in political tensions has seen more nations seeking destructive weapons, jeopardizing the treaties put in place to limit the possession of nuclear weapons and prevent their use.

In many respects, the fabric of the international norms and principles established in the aftermath of World War II has been seriously undermined, creating a basis for greater conflicts, including even a possible conflict between nuclear powers. The failure of many nations this year to commemorate the end of WWII indicates the principles established in the past to prevent new wars are being increasingly ignored and abandoned.

In 2023, the Global Civilization Initiative was proposed during the Communist Party of China in Dialogue with World Political Parties High-level Meeting to protect and respect the cultural diversity of the world. Then in 2025, China introduced the Global Governance Initiative at the ‘Shanghai Cooperation Organization (SCO) Plus’ Meeting to strengthen the international institutions meant to preserve peace and harmony in the world.

In 2013, China launched the Belt and Road Initiative (BRI). Occurring at a time when the West had totally lost interest in development, it put the issue of global development firmly back on the agenda, creating tremendous excitement among the nations of the Global South that had despaired of working their way out of poverty and misery. The BRI has become the lodestar for the Global South, providing the needed infrastructure for them to move forward on the road to progress. This initiative alone has created a bond of trust among them and China.

During meetings between Xi and Trump, both leaders agreed on a new vision of building a constructive China-US relationship of strategic stability. This involves positive stability with cooperation as the mainstay, healthy stability with competition in proper limits, constant stability with manageable differences, and lasting stability with expected peace.

Such a guiding concept stands in stark contrast to the previous phase of the relationship, characterized by great power rivalry, strategic confrontation and decoupling. In the often-troubled relationship between these two great powers, Xi expressed the hope of moving it from rivalry to partnership.

Even in the face of disruptions of international supply chains and increase in energy prices worldwide, China has maintained a stable economy. China’s 15th Five-Year Plan (2026-2030) calls for greater opening up to foreign investment and in the area of hi-tech, China is open to international cooperation rather than shutting itself behind ‘high walls’ like some nations.

Putin will arrive in China at a time when Russia-Ukraine military operations are still ongoing. During the course of the conflict, China has maintained a close relationship with Russia, in spite of its concerns about the conflict, and maintains good relations with Ukraine too.

The China-Russia relationship has been strengthened during these years, thanks to the close relationship between the two presidents and their overall agreement on issues of the international world order. And both leaders attest to the fact that the relationship of their two countries has now attained its highest level ever.

Given China’s position on the unnecessary conflict in Iran, it was not surprising that Iran’s Foreign Minister Seyyed Abbas Araghchi visited Beijing on May 6, a week before Trump, at a time when the US president was again threatening military strikes on Iran.

China has been working diligently to bring this conflict to an end. China and Pakistan put forward a five-point initiative for restoring peace and stability in the Gulf region. Those included respect for national sovereignty, rejection of force and regime change, protection of civilians and shipping, reaching a political settlement and upholding the principles of the UN Charter. China has also been supportive of Pakistani efforts to mediate peace negotiations between the US and Iran.

Amid the overall paralysis in many of our international institutions, this type of heads-of-state diplomacy, championed and taken to its highest level by the Chinese president, provides an alternative to increasing chaos. Putin’s visit will be another example in this genuine endeavor to bring order out of chaos. Given the important role the Chinese, US and Russian leaders play in determining the outcomes in a wide variety of areas, this new beginning could provide the impetus for restoring a just and lasting system of global governance.

This article was first published by CGTN.

The decoupling of the US and European armies within NATO is no longer theoretical – the process is already underway. American troop deployments are being canceled, and weapons deliveries – delayed.

The latest example came in early May, when the US canceled the rotation of 4,000 troops into Poland, a week after the announcement Washington is pulling 5,000 soldiers from Germany following German Chancellor Friedrich Merz’s criticism of the US-Israeli war on Iran as misguided.

US War Secretary Pete Hegseth has also canceled the deployment to Germany of a battalion specializing in long-range missiles, according to a leaked memo.

The bigger picture: America in Europe 

US forces have been permanently stationed on the European continent since World War II. Up to 80,000 American troops were stationed there in 2025 under a “coupled” system that is now unravelling. 

Both US President Donald Trump and his predecessor Joe Biden have signaled that Washington’s commitment to European defense is on the wane.

Responses by NATO’s European members have ranged from outright rejection of US militarism, as in the case of Spain, to both verbal criticism and acquiescence.

What decoupling actually means 

Decoupling armies in practical terms means the withdrawal of most of the 80,000 US troops in Europe, ending the post-1945 tradition of combined territorial defense and deterrence.

NATO’s European capitals are thus waking up to the prospect of living without the US military umbrella. “For the first time in human memory, we are alone,” as ex-ECB chief Mario Draghi has put it.

The US-Israeli war on Iran has stretched American stocks of ammunition, artillery systems, and missile interceptors thinner than at any point since the end of the Cold War.

US officials have warned several NATO members – including Baltic and Scandinavian states – that crucial weapons deliveries through the Foreign Military Sales program will be delayed, citing the US-Israeli war on Iran.

Beyond Iran, China remains the Pentagon’s primary long-term concern. Every brigade kept in Europe is one less available for a potential Pacific conflict.

Europe has become a secondary theater where NATO’s Euro-bloc will be expected to fend for itself.

‘Big bang’ or non-starter – EU’s army plan 

Earlier this year, EU defense chief Andrius Kubilius called for a “big bang in defense” – a 100,000-strong standing army to operate independently of the US and NATO.

The idea is deeply controversial. It would violate the EU treaty, require a new intergovernmental accord, and force member states to cede sovereignty over their armed forces – a non-starter for many capitals.

France has long championed the plan, with President Emmanuel Macron arguing for “strategic autonomy” from Washington, though Paris insists its nuclear deterrent would stay outside any joint command.

But analysts say the idea faces insurmountable legal hurdles: the EU’s founding treaties explicitly rule out a common army, and defense policy remains the exclusive preserve of national governments.

Europe’s capability problem 

Europe’s armies however remain highly dependent on the US for spy satellites, long-range missiles, heavy airlift aircraft, and undersea warfare capacity.

Earlier this month, German defense experts and industry executives published a paper arguing that EU defense autonomy will cost around $59 billion per year for the next decade.

The dramatic rise in NATO’s European members military spending has not translated into greater operational autonomy, though that may come. Vast amounts have been and will be spent, but capabilities remain fragmented across the bloc.

The internal European scramble 

Across the continent NATO’s European members are arming themselves at a pace not seen since the Cold War, citing intelligence reports of a ‘Russian threat’ – despite Moscow’s outright rejection of such – in an apparent effort to consolidate the EU and to reboot their economies through militarization.

In total, European NATO members spent a combined $559 billion on defense in 2025, with Germany’s outlays rising 24% to $114 billion and Spain’s jumping 50% to $40.2 billion.

The Franco-German brotherhood is the obvious place to find dissonance. In March, French President Emmanuel Macron announced plans to expand his country’s nuclear stockpile to ensure a secrecy-obscured arsenal so that “no state, however powerful, could shield itself from it, and no state, however vast, would recover from it.”

Berlin remains deeply uncomfortable with Macron’s nuclear overtures, while German officials have started recalling their country’s past military forays in ways that are making neighboring countries nervous.

The view from Moscow 

For Russia, the militarization of European states and transformation of the EU into a military alliance resembling NATO, but without US defense and deterrence, presents a direct and growing threat. European elites have a historical tradition of ‘marching eastward’.

Russia has scorned the EU army idea, suggesting that the bloc should first tackle its internal problems – refugees, energy dependence, and lagging NATO contributions.

Moscow has also repeatedly condemned the EU’s militarization as “using ostentatious Russophobia” as a pretext to turn Russia into a “model external enemy” and divert attention from internal European crises.

For Moscow, any transformation of the EU into a military alliance would raise security concerns and upset an already fragile strategic balance in Europe.

Rwandan businessman Felicien Kabuga has died in custody while awaiting trial for his alleged role in the East African nation’s 1994 genocide, the International Residual Mechanism for Criminal Tribunals (IRMCT) announced on Saturday. He was 93.

The IRMCT said Kabuga passed away while hospitalized in The Hague, Netherlands, where he was being held at the United Nations Detention Unit (UNDU).

“The president of the Mechanism, Judge Graciela Gatti Santana, has ordered a full inquiry into the circumstances surrounding Mr. Kabuga’s death, assigning Judge Alphons Orie to conduct the inquiry,” the UN court said in a statement.

An arrest warrant was issued by the International Criminal Tribunal for Rwanda (ICTR) in April 2013. Kabuga evaded capture before being arrested in France in May 2020 and transferred to The Hague branch of the IRMCT in 2020, where he entered a not-guilty plea in his first appearance in November 2020.

His trial officially began in September 2022. However, in September 2023, proceedings were indefinitely stayed after judges ruled Kabuga unfit to stand trial due to dementia. Prior to his death, he had been awaiting provisional release to a state willing to accept him.

“A man whom international judges had themselves recognized as unfit to stand trial died in prison, although his continued deprivation of liberty no longer served any judicial purpose,” Kabuga’s lawyer, Emmanuel Altit, said in a statement cited by AP.

Other suspects have faced justice in France, a common destination for individuals who fled the landlocked African state after being implicated in the genocide. In October 2024, a French court sentenced former Rwandan doctor Eugène Rwamucyo to 27 years in prison for complicity in the massacre.

Tehran will take the US and Israel to court over attacks on Iranian cultural sites, the Islamic Republic’s deputy foreign minister, Kazem Gharibabadi, has said.

A fragile ceasefire, which was established between the sides in early April after a month of intense hostilities initiated by the Americans and the Israelis, currently holds. However, there has been no progress in indirect peace talks, with both Washington and Tehran rejecting each other’s demands as unacceptable.

Gharibabadi wrote in a post on X on Sunday that at least 149 historical landmarks and museums in 20 Iranian provinces, including five UNESCO-registered sites, have been damaged by the US and Israeli bombardment.

The authorities in Tehran “will register, document, and pursue this assault on its cultural heritage within the framework of international responsibility; for it will allow no power to sacrifice the history of the great Iranian nation to its military and political objectives of today,” he wrote.

Cultural sites must be protected during conflicts in line with the 1954 Hague Convention and the fundamental rules of humanitarian law, the diplomat added.

“Iran’s cultural heritage is not merely a national asset of the Iranian people; it is part of humanity’s shared memory,” Gharibabadi said.

The attacks on historic landmarks by Washington and West Jerusalem constitute “a clear manifestation of the lawless behavior of the American regime and the Zionist regime,” the deputy minister insisted.

The Iranian Ministry of Culture previously estimated that repairing the heritage sites damaged during the conflict would cost some 70 trillion rials (nearly $39 million).

The American wars in Korea, Vietnam, Iraq, Syria, Afghanistan, and elsewhere have led to damage or destruction of multiple cultural heritage sites since the 1950s, but Washington had never been held liable. It’s increasingly difficult for foreign governments to sue the US in domestic or international courts due to the doctrine of sovereign immunity and its refusal to recognize compulsory jurisdiction of global legal bodies.

In early April, US President Donald Trump warned that Iran’s “whole civilization will die” if it fails to accept American demands and faced instant international backlash, with UN Secretary General Antonio Guterres saying that he was “deeply troubled” by the statement and Pope Leo XIV calling it “truly unacceptable.”

The Ebola outbreak linked to the Bundibugyo virus in the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DR Congo) and Uganda constitutes a global public health emergency, the World Health Organization (WHO) declared on Sunday.

At the same time, the WHO stopped short of labeling the situation a “pandemic emergency.” 

According to WHO data, at least eight laboratory-confirmed cases, 246 suspected cases, and 80 suspected deaths have been recorded in DR Congo’s eastern Ituri Province, while Uganda confirmed two imported cases in Kampala. Both patients in Uganda had recently traveled from the DR Congo and were admitted to intensive care units. 

Health officials stated that unusual clusters of deaths and infections among medical workers point to possible widespread community transmission and serious “gaps” in hospital infection control.

Unlike the more common Zaire strain of Ebola, there are currently no approved vaccines or targeted treatments for the Bundibugyo virus. “As such, this event is considered extraordinary,” officials said. 

Bundibugyo virus is a rare strain of Ebola first identified in Uganda in 2007. Scientists believe it is naturally carried by fruit bats and can spread to humans through contact with infected animals before transmitting between people through bodily fluids. 

South African President Cyril Ramaphosa warned that the Ebola outbreaks in the DR Congo and Uganda pose a serious regional threat, calling for urgent cross-border coordination to contain the spread. “Ebola does not respect borders,” he said, citing high mobility and ongoing instability in the region.

In affected areas, Red Cross volunteers have been going door to door to share health information, identify suspected cases, support contact tracing, and combat misinformation surrounding the outbreak.

Smartphones and weaker face-to-face relationships could be contributing to plunging birth rates worldwide, particularly among young people, as global fertility is declining at a record pace, the Financial Times has reported, citing researchers and demographic data.

An analysis spanning population records and Google search data found that birth rates declined sharply across multiple countries following the widespread adoption of smartphones, regardless of earlier demographic trends, the outlet wrote on Saturday.

The FT cited Jesus Fernandez-Villaverde, an economics professor at the University of Pennsylvania and a researcher on demographic change, who described falling fertility as “the big question of our time.” He argued that many of today’s economic and social problems were “downstream” from collapsing birth rates.

Researchers are increasingly linking heavy smartphone and social media use as well as weaker face-to-face relationships to declining fertility in countries around the world, including the US, UK, Brazil and South Korea, according to the report.

The FT cited a recent paper by Nathan Hudson and Hernan Moscoso-Boedo of the University of Cincinnati examining birth rates during the rollout of 4G mobile networks in the US and UK.

Similar trends had been recorded across the world, the outlet said. France and Poland saw comparable declines from 2009, followed by Mexico, Morocco and Indonesia in around 2012, while Ghana, Nigeria and Senegal recorded steep drops between 2013 and 2015.

According to a Eurostat report published last month, the EU’s population is projected to shrink by 11%, or about 53 million people, over the next 75 years. The region’s population is expected to peak at 453 million in 2029 before falling below 400 million by the end of the century as fertility rates decline to around 1.3 children per woman.

As part of efforts to rebuild social connections, Russian policymakers in 2024 introduced restrictions banning students from using mobile phones in schools, with exceptions allowed only for emergencies.

Specialists from Moscow will conduct an epidemiological investigation in Uganda after it requested assistance amid an Ebola outbreak, Russia’s public health watchdog has announced.

Ebola is a severe viral disease that can cause hemorrhagic fever, organ failure, and death. The latest outbreak is affecting Uganda and neighboring Democratic Republic of the Congo (DR Congo), prompting the World Health Organization (WHO) to declare a public health emergency of international concern.

“Russia’s public health watchdog will also provide logistical support to Uganda’s Health Ministry and supply Ebola diagnostic tests developed by its affiliated research institutions and used in Russia,” Rospotrebnadzor, which is responsible for monitoring epidemics, said on Monday.

The organization highlighted that joint efforts in recent years have significantly strengthened Uganda’s scientific, laboratory, and personnel capabilities. In 2024, Russia transferred a mobile anti-epidemic laboratory to Ugandan partners, enabling rapid diagnostics of dangerous infectious diseases. The facility was already used in 2025 to help contain a previous Ebola outbreak.

Russian medics have also trained more than 80 Ugandan specialists in infectious disease monitoring, disinfection practices, laboratory diagnostics and biological safety.

The WHO said the outbreak poses a serious international public health threat requiring cross-border coordination, warning that the virus has been detected in areas with high population mobility, increasing the risk of further spread.

Russian forces have carried out a large-scale missile and drone strike against military-related targets in Ukraine in response to “terrorist attacks” Kiev launched over the weekend, the Defense Ministry in Moscow has said.

On Sunday, Moscow and its suburbs came under what appeared to be the largest Ukrainian drone raid in more than a year, which left at least three people, including an Indian national, killed and over a dozen wounded. Kiev launched some 130 UAVs at the Russian capital, according to Moscow Mayor Sergey Sobyanin.

The Russian Defense Ministry said in a statement on Monday that the overnight bombardment focused on Ukrainian defense industry facilities; fuel, energy and transport infrastructure; as well as naval ports and military airfields.

Land- and sea-based precision weapons and drones were deployed during the attack, the ministry said.

On Sunday, Ukraine’s Vladimir Zelensky praised his military and intelligence services for the attack on Moscow, in which three civilians were killed. It “sent a clear signal that one shouldn’t mess with Ukraine,” he claimed.

Zelensky also suggested that the raid meant that the conflict was moving to Russian territory, neglecting the steady advance by Moscow’s forces in Donbass and along other parts of the frontline.

Ukrainian drone raids deep inside Russia have intensified since mid-March, with Kiev launching hundreds of fixed-wing UAVs on an almost daily basis against residential neighborhoods, civilian infrastructure, and industrial facilities far from the front.

Russian officials have described the aerial incursions as “terrorist attacks” meant to compensate for the setbacks the Ukrainian military has been suffering on the battlefield.

Tehran could respond militarily to US naval forces enforcing a blockade of Iranian ports, a senior Iranian official has said, warning that the Gulf of Oman could become a “graveyard” for American warships.

Speaking on Iranian state television on Sunday, Mohsen Rezaei, who serves on a senior advisory body to Supreme Leader Mojtaba Khamenei, said Iran’s patience with the ongoing maritime restrictions was running out after weeks of disrupted shipping activity.

“The longer they continue the naval blockade of Iran, the greater the damage to the world economy will be,” Rezaei stated. “We advise the US military to lift the siege before the Gulf of Oman turns into their graveyard.”

Rezaei, a former commander of the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC), argued that Tehran would be justified in responding militarily to an act of war, which he stressed the blockade amounts to.

US President Donald Trump announced the naval operation on April 13, undermining indirect diplomatic efforts mediated by Pakistan. Although Washington and Tehran declared a fragile ceasefire on April 8, both sides have continued to reject each other’s conditions for a broader settlement.

NOW: 🇺🇸 🇮🇷 TRUMP THREATENS IRAN

Trump just posted this to his truth social.

To me it looks like a clear threat of invasion or balkanisation, either directly or via proxy.

What a clown. pic.twitter.com/vhKOzPw7CD

— Adam (@adamemedia1) May 17, 2026

The crisis was triggered by a US-Israeli bombing campaign targeting Iran’s leadership and key infrastructure. Tehran responded with retaliatory strikes against the attacking nations and against regional countries hosting US military bases. Iranian authorities have also restricted shipping through the Strait of Hormuz, a strategic waterway linking the Persian Gulf and the Gulf of Oman.

According to reports by Axios and CNN, Trump convened senior national security officials on Saturday to discuss possible next steps, including renewed military action. The meeting was reportedly held hours after Trump’s return from a state visit to China, and included Vice President J.D. Vance, Secretary of State Marco Rubio, CIA Director John Ratcliffe, and special envoy Steve Witkoff, sources have said.

More than 40 pupils have been kidnapped after militants, suspected to be members of the jihadist group Boko Haram, attacked a school in Borno State in northeastern Nigeria, according to a senior lawmaker and local residents.

The gunmen reportedly stormed the Primary and Junior Government Day Secondary School (GDSS) in Mussa-Biri community, located in Askira-Uba Local Government Area, last Friday.

In a statement cited by local media, Senator Mohammed Ali Ndume, who represents Borno South, said 32 students were seized from classrooms and another ten from nearby homes.

The Network of Civil Society Organizations – Borno State said on Sunday that 48 students were abducted in the “heinous attack” that has left “the entire community in profound shock and psychological trauma.”

The organization said the insurgents breached the school’s perimeter when classes were in session, causing pandemonium that forced “dozens of other students to flee into the surrounding bushes.”

The Nigerian police and military have not issued any public statement confirming the Mussa village incident. The raid comes amid a wave of violent attacks across Africa’s most populous nation, despite increased security measures, including a state of emergency declared by the government.

A week earlier, 17 police officers were killed when terrorists launched an assault on the Nigerian Army Special Forces School in Buni Yadi, Yobe State. Authorities described the May 8 raid as “a coordinated attack on the facility from multiple directions.”

Last Thursday, the Nigerian Police Force announced it had conducted internal purges, dismissing officers involved in kidnapping, extortion, and armed robbery.

IGP DISU VISITS ORIIRE COMMUNITIES, ORDERS INTENSIFIED RESCUE OPERATIONS

The Inspector-General of Police, IGP Olatunji Rilwan Disu, psc (+), NPM, today paid a visit to Oyo State following the tragic attack and abduction incident that occurred in Oriire Local Government Area of… pic.twitter.com/G7Idv9bnFI

— Nigeria Police Force (@PoliceNG) May 16, 2026

A Colombian mercenary has spoken of his regret at fighting for Ukraine, telling RT that the experience nearly cost him his life and could leave him unable to safely return home.

William Andres Gallego Orozco, 23, was captured by Russian troops after being seriously wounded by shrapnel on the front line. Russian soldiers provided him with medical treatment and evacuated him from the combat zone.

Speaking to RT, he said he had been promised around $3,200 per month and believed he would work as a cook for the Ukrainian military. According to Orozco, neither the pay nor the assignment matched what he had been told.

Orozco said he received just 15 days of basic military instruction before being issued a UAR-15 rifle – a Ukrainian-produced version of the AR-15 platform – along with a radio. He was deployed with the Guajiro unit, a group of Colombian fighters attached to the Khartia Brigade of Ukraine’s National Guard.

During combat operations, he said he witnessed heavy casualties among foreign recruits while Ukrainian commanders stayed away from the front. Orozco could now face difficulties in returning to his homeland, where mercenary activity is prohibited by law.

Watch the full report.

Taiwanese President Lai Ching-te has defended purchases of American weaponry after US President Donald Trump characterized weapons deliveries to the island as a bargaining chip in talks with Beijing.

During Trump’s visit to Beijing last week, Chinese President Xi Jinping described the status of the self-governing island as the central issue in bilateral relations, warning that it could potentially lead to conflict. Beijing has repeatedly condemned US arms sales to Taipei as interference in China’s internal affairs and a violation of the decades-old One-China policy.

In a statement posted on social media on Sunday, Lai called the arms sales “the most important deterrent” against conflict in the region.

“We thank President Trump for his continued support for peace and stability across the Taiwan Strait since his first term, including the continuous increase in the scale and amount of arms sales to Taiwan,” he wrote.

Lai added that Taiwan “will not provoke” a conflict, but would also not “give up national sovereignty and dignity.”

In December, Trump approved a record $11 billion weapons package for Taiwan that included missiles, drones, artillery systems, and military software. Last week, however, he raised doubts about future deliveries, telling Fox News that he had not yet approved a proposed new $14 billion package.

China considers Taiwan part of its sovereign territory – a position shared by the vast majority of countries, including Russia. Xi stated in 2022 that Beijing sought peaceful reunification, but warned that the People’s Republic would not rule out the use of force if provoked.

Although the US does not officially recognize Taiwan as a separate country, it maintains informal diplomatic ties with Taipei, which Beijing also regards as a violation of the One-China policy.

US President Donald Trump has threatened Iran with a new attack if Tehran doesn’t agree to make swift concessions to Washington.

Indirect talks between the sides have remained stalled since a fragile ceasefire was established in early April after a month of hostilities initiated by the US and Israel. Both Washington and Tehran have repeatedly dismissed each other’s demands, with Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi earlier this week singling out the Trump administration’s “maximalist approach” and provocative rhetoric as main obstacles to reaching a deal.

Meanwhile, disruptions continue in the Strait of Hormuz, which has heavily affected global shipping and sent oil prices soaring. While Tehran has announced its own mechanism to regulate maritime traffic through the waterway, which accounts for some 25% of global crude trade, the US has rejected the scheme and is enforcing a naval blockade on Iranian ports in retaliation.

Trump took to his Truth Social platform on Sunday to warn that “for Iran, the Clock is Ticking, and they better get moving, FAST, or there won’t be anything left of them. TIME IS OF THE ESSENCE!”

The new threat followed the president’s meeting on Saturday with top members of his national security team, including Vice President J.D. Vance, Secretary of State Marco Rubio, CIA Director John Ratcliffe and special envoy Steve Witkoff, dedicated to the situation around Iran, CNN reported.

According to the broadcaster’s sources, the Pentagon has prepared a list of targets, including energy and infrastructure sites, if Trump ultimately decides to resume strikes on the country.

The New York Times reported on Friday, citing unnamed American officials, that the US and Israel are actively preparing for a renewal of hostilities with Iran and could launch “more aggressive bombing runs” as early as next week.

The UAE said an unidentified drone struck the territory of its only nuclear power plant on Sunday amid ongoing tensions in the Middle East.

According to the Emirati Defense Ministry, three drones entered the country “from the western border region.” While two UAVs were shot down, the third struck an electrical generator “outside the inner perimeter” of the Barakah Nuclear Power Plant in the Al Dhafra region. No injuries or radioactive contamination were reported.

While the Emirati authorities stopped short of directly accusing Iran, the country’s Foreign Ministry condemned the “unprovoked terrorist attack,” saying it threatened national security and risked further escalation.

Regional tensions remain high as US-Iran peace talks continue to stall, with both sides accusing each other of advancing unacceptable demands. Several media outlets have reported in recent weeks that US President Donald Trump is considering abandoning the fragile truce declared last month and resuming airstrikes.

Iran has accused Gulf states hosting US military bases of facilitating attacks during the US and Israeli bombing campaign launched against the country on February 28.

“The truth is that the UAE was directly involved in the aggression against my country. When the attacks started, they didn’t even issue a condemnation,” Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi told journalists last week on the sidelines of a BRICS meeting in New Delhi.

Last week, the Wall Street Journal reported that the UAE had conducted covert strikes against Iran during the conflict.

Israel has approved plans to establish a new military complex on the site of the former UN Relief and Works Agency (UNRWA) headquarters in East Jerusalem, Defense Minister Israel Katz has announced.

Israeli authorities have accused the agency of colluding with Hamas during the October 7, 2023 attack.

The Israel Defense Forces (IDF) seized and partially demolished the UNRWA compound in 2024 after lawmakers passed legislation banning the organization’s activities in areas under Israeli control.

In December, the Defense Ministry signed an agreement with the Jerusalem municipality to establish a new defense headquarters in the city and relocate several military colleges there.

According to Israeli media reports, the new compound will cover around nine acres near Ammunition Hill and include an IDF museum, recruitment offices, and facilities for the defense minister.

UNRWA head Philippe Lazzarini condemned the destruction of the office as “a new level of open and deliberate defiance of international law.”

While the UN denied any institutional support for Hamas, UNRWA said following an internal probe in 2024 that available evidence indicated that nine of its employees “may have been involved in the attacks of October 7.”

The agency operates schools, clinics, and aid programs for Palestinian refugees across Gaza, the West Bank, Jordan, Lebanon, and Syria. More than 2.3 million people have been displaced by Israel’s military campaign in Gaza, and over one million are sheltering in UNRWA facilities. More than 72,000 Palestinians have been killed in Gaza since 2023, according to the UN.

UN agencies and humanitarian groups have repeatedly warned of catastrophic conditions in the enclave, including widespread hunger and overcrowded refugee camps. Israel has denied accusations of deliberately targeting civilians and argued that Hamas has stolen food aid and obstructed humanitarian deliveries to Gaza.

Cuban Foreign Minister Bruno Rodriguez Parrilla has accused the US of fabricating a pretext for a potential invasion following an Axios report claiming that the island had acquired attack drones from Russia and Iran.

Earlier this month, US President Donald Trump had suggested that Cuba could become Washington’s next target after the conflict with Iran.

Rodriguez Parrilla described the Axios report as an attempt to concoct a “fraudulent case to justify the ruthless economic war against the Cuban people and, eventually, military aggression.” He added that Cuba “neither threatens nor desires war.”

“Certain media outlets are playing along, spreading slanderous claims and publishing insinuations leaked by the US government,” the minister said.

The US imposed an oil embargo on the Caribbean island in February, prompting blackouts and fuel shortages, and has repeatedly threatened military action. 

A senior US official told Axios that the White House views Cuba’s potential use of drones as “a growing threat.”

The outlet added, however, that US officials do not consider Cuba an imminent threat and do not believe Havana is actively planning an attack.

Russia, which has maintained close ties with Cuba since Soviet times, including a long history of military cooperation, did not confirm supplying drones to Havana. Russian President Vladimir Putin has condemned the US blockade of Cuba as unacceptable, while the Russian Foreign Ministry has said Moscow is prepared to provide the island with “political, diplomatic, and material support.”

Last week, CIA Director John Ratcliffe paid a rare visit to Havana, reportedly pressing for reforms. According to media reports, Washington has demanded that Cuba liberalize its political system and transition from socialism to a market-based economy.

Domestic demand is expected to spur economic growth in Russia, Economic Development Minister Maksim Reshetnikov has told RBK.

Despite facing economic challenges, the Russian economy has proven far more resilient to Western sanctions imposed over the Ukraine conflict than many analysts had initially predicted. Kremlin officials argue that the country has largely succeeded in reorienting trade toward new markets and adapting to foreign pressure.

In an interview published on Sunday, Reshetnikov said Russia’s economic growth remains largely inward-oriented, while the role of exports is diminishing. According to the minister, the trend is being supported by a steady increase in real disposable incomes, which are projected to rise by 1.6% this year.

Reshetnikov attributed the trend to the gradual reduction of the Russian central bank’s policy rate in recent months. According to the minister, lower rates are making bank deposits less attractive, freeing up more money for consumer spending, while lending activity is also recovering.

The government is also seeking to boost labor productivity through the introduction of new technologies, artificial intelligence, and automation. Reshetnikov said the authorities plan to expand workforce participation by offering new internships, apprenticeships, and short-term training programs.

Reshetnikov added that the “balanced policy” pursued by the central bank and the government would allow inflation to gradually decline to a projected 5.2% by the end of 2026.

During a meeting with ministers on Friday, President Vladimir Putin pointed to “positive statistical data” for March, including a record-low unemployment rate of 2.2% and GDP growth of 1.8%.

Governor General of Canada Mary Simon has stripped Peter Dalglish, a co-founder of the Street Kids International charity and a convicted pedophile, of the country’s top honor. The famous aid worker was found guilty of raping two boys and sentenced to 16 years behind bars in Nepal back in 2019.

On Saturday, the Canada Gazette, the official media outlet of the Canadian government, reported that Simon terminated the appointment of Dalglish to the Order of Canada on April 15. He was originally awarded the merit in recognition of his humanitarian work in 2016.

Since the late 1980s, Dalglish has worked in multiple African and Asian countries, including Nepal, on programs aimed at improving the living conditions for vulnerable youths. During the course of his career, he has also been involved with several humanitarian agencies, including UN Habitat in Afghanistan and the UN Mission for Ebola Emergency Response in Liberia.

In a statement to CBC News, the governor general’s office described the revocation of the honor as an “extraordinary measure,” noting that Dalglish “has acted in a manner inconsistent with the standard of conduct expected of members of this society.”

Pushkar Karki, chief of the Central Investigation Bureau, alleged that Dalglish had been luring children from poor families with promises of education, job opportunities and trips.

In July 2019, the Canadian national was sentenced to 16 years in prison and ordered to pay around $10,000 to his victims.

Dalglish has consistently denied the accusations, with his lawyer claiming that his client had been set up.

In recent years, Nepal has seen several other cases where foreign nationals have been accused of sexually abusing vulnerable children while operating under the guise of humanitarian workers.

Two US Navy electronic warfare aircraft collided mid-air on Sunday during the Gunfighter Skies Air Show at Mountain Home Air Force Base in Idaho. All four crew members ejected safely.

Video from the scene shows two EA-18G Growler jets flying in close formation at low altitude. At one point, the aircraft collide and appear to become entangled before both stall and spiral toward the ground. The pilots eject just seconds after the collision, with four brightly colored parachutes visible in the sky.

“All four members of the aircrew successfully ejected and are being evaluated by medical personnel,” Naval Air Forces spokeswoman Commander Amelia Umayam said.

The Boeing EA-18G Growler is a carrier-based electronic warfare aircraft derived from the F/A-18F Super Hornet fighter jet. Introduced in the late 2000s, it was developed to replace the Northrop Grumman EA-6B Prowler electronic warfare platform.

The EU has been filling its underground gas storage facilities at record-low rates for three consecutive days this week, Russia’s state-owned Gazprom has said, citing figures by the Gas Infrastructure Europe (GIE) association.

The bloc has been grappling with the fallout of the US-Israeli attack on Iran, which has caused global energy shortages and a spike in prices. The situation is primarily linked to the standoff in the Strait of Hormuz, which remains disrupted despite a shaky ceasefire coming into force early in April.

Reduced maritime traffic has heavily restricted energy supplies since the waterway handled around 20% of global LNG trade before the conflict, primarily going to European and Asian markets.

This week, the GIE recorded the lowest-ever rates for filling up European gas storage for three days, from Tuesday to Thursday, Gazprom said on Sunday. Apart from the Iran conflict, unusually cold weather in Europe also contributed to the historically low readings, the Russian petroleum and gas giant suggested.

Belgium, France, and Spain have accounted for most imports, according to the IEEFA. Despite the EU’s goal of phasing out Russian fossil fuels by 2027, the country remains its second-largest LNG supplier, the institute said. The hostilities in the Middle East have also hampered the bloc’s proclaimed effort to diversify imports, and the EU is now even more reliant on American and Russian LNG supplies. 

Russian officials have signaled readiness to cut energy ties with the EU altogether and to switch to emerging markets and more reliable customers. Moscow has suggested, however, that the EU will ultimately be forced to mend energy ties, arguing that the bloc’s “Russophobic politicians” are risking deindustrialization for the sake of an ideological stance.

An EU proposal to drastically cut its steel import quota in response to global overcapacity and the shrinking of local manufacturing will hurt Kiev, Ukrainian manufacturers and officials have told the Financial Times.

The quota is expected to be cut by 47% on July 1, and the bloc will levy an additional 50% tariff on any steel imports above that amount. According to the EU authorities, the new regulation is meant to protect local manufacturers and address the “negative trade-related effects” of global overcapacity on its steel market. A surge in imports has already cost European steel mills thousands of jobs, forcing manufacturers to operate at reduced capacity.

The quota cut is expected to heavily affect Ukraine, which has emerged as a major supplier of steel to the EU. While Kiev has had free trade agreements with the bloc, the new quota will apply to all trading partners to comply with WTO rules. 

The EU has been in negotiations with Kiev and some 20 other trading partners over a preferential rate of distributing the diminished quota, unnamed Ukrainian officials told the newspaper. Despite the apparent desire of the EU to mitigate the impact on Ukraine, it initially proposed a 70% reduction in imports compared to last year. While the EU Commission offered a quota of 713,000 tonnes to Kiev, it ultimately sold some 2.65 million tonnes to the bloc, which was Ukraine’s main market for steel. 

The estimated loss of steel export revenues hovers around the €1 billion ($1.26 billion) mark, according to the FT’s sources. The sharp drop is bound to further affect Ukraine’s strained budget, which has become increasingly reliant on foreign aid and loans amid the conflict with Russia. In recent months, Kiev has been pressed into further hiking taxes and making fiscal reforms by its main financial backers, the EU and IMF, who have tied the changes to promises of more foreign aid.

China maintained the upper hand during US President Donald Trump’s visit to Beijing this week. He visibly tried to ingratiate himself with Chinese President Xi Jinping, but his counterpart made no attempt to reciprocate.

Trump has been heaping praise on Xi personally as a great leader and has vaunted his personal ties with him. He laid it thick at the start of formal delegation-level talks in Beijing, eliciting a smile from the normally impassive Xi who, in turn, did not feel the need to play to audience.

Trump is not particularly popular in China and Xi would have not have wanted, in any case, to unnecessarily rehabilitate him in the public eye in China.

Earlier, during the welcome ceremony at the Great Hall of the People, Trump made several overtly warm physical gestures toward Xi, but the Chinese leader remained formal and impassive. By acting as a suitor, Trump effectively handed Xi the political and psychological upper hand.

Trump effectively cast himself as someone who had come to seek favors from China. His boast that only the number ones, not number twos of top American corporations were accompanying him hardly projected strength, coming after years of Washington’s (and Trump’s own) tirades against China’s business practices, alleged “rip‑offs” of US consumers, and technology theft. This, despite the fact that Trump had imposed sweeping tariffs on Chinese goods and moved to restrict the flow of advanced technology, especially chips, to China.

From the media coverage of the visit, it does not seem that the Chinese side felt overwhelmed by the composition of Trump’s delegation. The emphasis in the reporting was on Trump’s praise for Xi, China’s rising stature, the US engaging China as an equal global power, setting a new framework of cooperation, and Trump visiting China when he was relatively weak domestically and needing trade deals before the mid-term elections.

Normally, before a visit of this importance, which has been under preparation for many months, the two sides begin working on a joint statement that would list the agreed-upon outcomes. In this case, no joint statement has been issued, which means that on many contentious points, the differences between the two sides could not be bridged.

The Taiwan issue is especially divisive; an agreed formulation on Iran, with the US being the initiator of the war and also militarily blockading the Strait of Hormuz, would have been difficult (China has been vetoing one-sided resolutions in the UN Security Council, prompted by the US). The same goes for the South China Sea and many other issues, including sanctions, tariffs and trade disbalance. All this signifies that the visit did not produce definable concrete results.

Ways to enhance bilateral economic cooperation  were discussed, including by expanding American businesses’ access to Chinese markets and increasing Chinese investment in US industries. Higher Chinese purchases of American agricultural products was discussed, but no figures for corn, soya beans, sorghum, beef etc. are mentioned, though in his public remarks Trump said China had agreed to buy 200 Boeing jets and US oil as well.

US Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent has told the American media that the US and China have also discussed forming a “Board of Trade” and “Board of Investment” to oversee commerce between the two countries.

Some understandings seem to have been reached but not anything major, as Xi speaks of the economic and trade teams having reached a generally balanced and positive outcome, which is a low-key formulation, contrary to Trump’s claim to have “achieved a fantastic trade agreement.” Xi has said that China will only continue to open up. 

That China expressed interest in purchasing more American oil to reduce China’s dependence on the Strait in the future is not only not a commitment it is ironical too, as the US has sanctioned China’s “tinpot refineries” buying Iranian oil and has ended the flourishing oil ties between Venezuela and China.

It is hard to believe that both countries genuinely agreed Iran can “never” have a nuclear weapon, given that this is the central justification for the US‑Israeli war on Iran. China, as a former JCPOA party, would in any case be reluctant to see Iran go nuclear because of the regional fallout. Trump’s claim that Xi said during their summit that Beijing would not provide military equipment to Iran sounds rather more like what Washington would like to hear – as also is the case with China’s purported military-tech support for Russia.

In response to Trump’s claim that Xi Jinping had offered China’s help in reaching a settlement with Iran, the Chinese Foreign Ministry set out Beijing’s position at some length. It said that China recognizes that the conflict has put a heavy strain on global economic growth, supply chains, international trade order and the stability of the global energy supply. It added that there is no point in continuing this conflict, which should not have happened in the first place, and that dialogue and negotiation are the right way forward while the use force is a dead end. It called for a settlement of the Iranian nuclear issue and other issues that accommodate the concerns of all parties, a comprehensive and lasting ceasefire as soon as possible, and laying the foundation for building a sustainable security architecture for the region.

The US didn’t mention Taiwan in its readout of the meeting. Trump acknowledged to the US media that Xi had raised the issue forcefully, including that of US arms supplies to Taiwan, but he listened and did not respond. Trump has since also equivocated on defending Taiwan and executive approval of $14 billion of arms aid to Taiwan cleared by the US Congress. He has also called on Taiwan and China to “cool it”, meaning avoiding provocations. 

The Chinese readout of the Xi-Trump summit has a hard, realistic and demanding edge to it. The emphasis is on a relationship based on equality. Centrality is given to US handling of the Taiwan issue, with Xi warning that it must be treated with utmost caution. If handled well, bilateral relations can maintain overall stability, but if handled poorly it can lead to confrontation and even conflict, pushing the entire relationship into a very dangerous situation. This has implications for Trump’s decision on the $14 billion arms package for Taiwan approved by the US Congress.

When Xi speaks about an agreement to establish a “constructive and stable relationship between China and the US,” it implies that the provocations have come from the US and that China is a victim. This is the usual Chinese tactic of placing the responsibility for handling ties on the shoulders of others and not accepting its own responsibility in creating tensions.

Xi says that faced with differences and frictions, equal consultation is the only correct choice, which is another formula that places the onus of making the “correct choice” on the other party and not China.

For Xi, stabilizing bilateral relations and strengthening communication were important. In his view, “we have established a new status called the ‘China-US Constructive Strategic Stable Relationship’" with the US. He added that the two sides had “achieved important agreements on stabilizing economic and trade relations, expanding practical cooperation in various fields, and properly handling mutual concerns.” The reference is to properly handling figures in statements that China makes on border issues with India. The sub-text is that it is not China but the other side that fails to properly address differences.

In his opening remarks to Trump at the formal talks, Xi called on the US to be “partners, not rivals,” and made a reference to overcoming the Thucydides trap. He has done so in the past, but that he chose to do so when the debate over this concept is no longer current internationally, suggests that Xi wanted to revive the debate and convey that China was now the risen power that was in a position to potentially clash with the US as the established power.

Trump seems to have understood the message belatedly and later in his Truth Social post called this an elegant way by Xi to refer to the US as a declining power. The subtle message here by Xi is also that China and the US are the principal powers today and bear the shared responsibility for global peace and prosperity – a possible hint of a G2. 

German Chancellor Friedrich Merz told an audience of local Catholics in the southwestern city of Wuerzburg that he no longer advises young people to travel to the United States for work and study, citing the rapidly changing “social climate” in the country.

Merz, who has served as chancellor since May 2025, said “I would not recommend to my children today that they go to the US to get an education and to work” – a comment that attracted robust applause from the audience.

The chancellor’s concern focused primarily on the job market in the US, saying “the social climate that has suddenly developed” in the US had become a source of concern and argued that “even the best educated in America have great difficulty in finding a job.”

“I am a great admirer of America,” Merz added, eliciting laughter from the audience, “but right now my admiration is not increasing.”

New data shows that the German chancellor is not wrong in his prognosis of the US labor market. For the first time since Gallup began measuring the life evaluation of the American workforce, more US workers are struggling in their lives (49%) than thriving (46%).

“This contrasts with 2022 and 2023, when the reverse was true, with the share of US employees considered ‘thriving’ staying in the low-to-mid 50s – a mark of relative resilience after pandemic disruptions. After staying steady between 57% and 60% from 2009 to 2019, the thriving rate among workers fell to 55% in 2020 before rebounding in 2021 then steadily decreasing after that,” Gallup reported.

Americans are 26 times more likely to be shot compared to their counterparts in high-income countries, according to the Brady Center. Every day, 327 people are shot in the United States, of that number 117 will die from their injuries. Firearm suicides in the US account for 35% of all the world’s suicides, Brady found, despite the US making up 4% of the world’s population. It’s a well-known fact that America has more guns than people – there were 67 million more firearms than people in 2023.

The situation with regards to sexual violence is no less disturbing. Someone in the US is sexually assaulted every 68 seconds, while nearly 1 in 2 adult women and 1 in 4 adult men in the US have experienced some form of unwanted sexual contact in their lifetime. However, it is estimated that only about 25% to 40% of all rapes and sexual assaults are reported to the police.

The situation in Germany with regards to crime, while not as bad as the United States, is steadily worsening with each passing year and should give leaders like Merz tremendous pause. Germany has experienced a significant increase in reported crime since 2023, with police statistics recording a rise in total offenses to nearly six million. Violent crime reached a 15-year high in 2025, while sexual offenses and politically motivated crimes saw notable spikes.

Violent crimes, such as grievous bodily harm, robberies, and knife attacks, have grown significantly. Major cities like Berlin and Frankfurt have seen unprecedented spikes in organized criminal violence and gun-related incidents. Meanwhile, Germany has smashed all of its previous records for shoplifting in 2024. An annual survey of 98 retailers estimates a 3% increase on the year before – amounting to some €4.95 billion ($5.84 billion) in total losses.

In December, the White House warned that Europe faces “civilizational erasure” within 20 years and questioned whether certain nations like Germany and France can remain reliable allies, in a new strategy document that puts a particular focus on the continent. The 33-page National Security Strategy sees the US leader outline his vision for the world where the US remains “the greatest and most successful nation in human history.”

Merz rose to power in 2025 as a staunch Transatlanticist but has since leveled criticism of the United States, Germany’s most powerful ally. Trump, in response, said the German chancellor should focus on fixing his own “broken country” as the United States is preparing to remove 5,000 troops from Germany as the two countries go through the worst bilateral breakup since World War II. It’s going to require a lot of work for the two countries to look past their separate problems and see each other in a new light.

Footage has been published online purporting to show an assault by an Israeli settler against a Palestinian farmer in the occupied West Bank, in one of the latest alleged attacks targeting Palestinian civilians.

The video, posted by the media office of the Palestinian government on Saturday, shows a blindfolded man on his knees in a field, and later lying on the ground surrounded by armed men. An accompanying caption alleges the farmer was “abducted and restrained” by the settler.

The footage emerged amid a surge in violence across the West Bank, where settlers have carried out repeated raids on Palestinian communities, torching homes and vehicles, vandalizing property, and assaulting residents, according to witnesses.

In a separate post on Sunday, the Palestinian government shared images of what it described as the aftermath of an attack by “extremist Israeli settlers” in the town of Surif, where several vehicles were torched.

Human-rights groups, the UN, and many analysts say some settlers use violence, intimidation, and property destruction to push Palestinians off contested land or retaliate for Palestinian attacks.

Images capture the destruction left behind following an attack by extremist Israeli settlers in Surif, a town north of Al-Khalil in the occupied West Bank, where several Palestinian vehicles were set ablaze. pic.twitter.com/Q6KDwzwwBV

— Government Communication Center (@pal_gcc_en) May 17, 2026

The UN says around 40,000 Palestinians have been displaced in the West Bank since the beginning of 2025, driven by intensified Israeli military operations, home demolitions, and rising attacks by settlers.

Israeli officials, including Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, have condemned settler attacks as the actions of a “minority” of “extremists.” Critics, however, argue that weak law enforcement, settlement expansion, and the influence of far-right pro-settler parties have contributed to a climate of growing impunity.

Texas Children’s Hospital (TCH) will become the first American medical institution to open a clinic for adolescents seeking to reverse gender-related medical treatments, the US Department of Justice said.

The move comes as part of a settlement of a years-long probe by the DOJ and Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton into America’s largest children’s hospital over its alleged false billings to secure insurance coverage for pediatric gender-affirming treatments.

The Justice Department said in a statement on Friday that Texas Children’s agreed not to offer sex change services, inducing administration of puberty blockers and cross-sex hormones, to minors anymore.

The Houston-based center will also pay over $10 million in damages and “dedicate millions to the provision of medical care to children harmed by the provision of such procedures,” the statement read.

Paxton announced in a separate statement that the TCH will also dismiss five doctors, who according to him, “harmed patients by performing dangerous medical interventions for the purpose of ‘transitioning’ them.” 

“The Justice Department will use every weapon at its disposal to end the destructive and discredited practice of so-called ‘gender-affirming care’ for children,” Blanche insisted.

The hospital has denied any wrongdoing, saying in a statement that it decided to settle in order “to protect our resources from endless and costly litigation” and return to focusing on patient care.

“We stand proud knowing we will always put our purpose over politics and that we have and will continue to follow the law,” it said.

Senior counsel at Lambda Legal, an LGBTQ advocacy group, Karen Loewy told Reuters that “it’s deeply appalling to see [the TCH] capitulate to the relentless pressure campaigns of both AG Paxton and the Trump Administration.” 

Three Indian nationals have been wounded and one was killed in a drone strike in Moscow Region, New Delhi’s embassy in Russia has said.

The incident occurred overnight amid a large-scale Ukrainian kamikaze drone raid on the Russian capital and its surroundings. The attack appears to have been the largest to affect the area in over a year.

The Indian Embassy described the victims as “workers” but did not disclose where the attack occurred. The diplomats are now “closely cooperating with the company's management and local authorities” and providing assistance to the victims. 

“Today in the Moscow region, as a result of a drone attack, one citizen of India was killed and three others were injured. Embassy staff traveled to the scene of the incident and visited the victims in the hospital,” the mission said in a statement.

Kiev has intensified long-range drone attacks on Russia since mid-March, sending fixed-wing UAVs in the hundreds on an almost daily basis. Moscow has condemned the strikes as “terrorist” attacks, alleging that they indiscriminately target civilian sites and infrastructure. 

Russia has been retaliating with a long-range strike campaign of its own, targeting Ukraine’s dual-use infrastructure, including military manufacturing installations and energy facilities. Russia maintains it carefully selects the targets and never attacks purely civilian sites.

Some US officials are encouraging the United Arab Emirates (UAE) to seize one of Iran’s islands in the Persian Gulf, The Telegraph has reported, citing sources.

The island in question is Lavan, one of Iran’s key offshore oil export centers, which hosts refinery, storage and tanker-loading infrastructure connected to several major crude fields. It also sits atop a large natural gas reserve.

Some in the circle of US President Donald Trump have suggested the UAE should take the island, the outlet wrote on Saturday.

“Go take ‘em! It would be UAE boots on the ground instead of US,” it cited a former senior Trump security official as saying.

The reported proposal reflects broader pressure in Washington to reduce direct American military exposure as the war with Iran stretches into its third month.

US defense analysts and military publications have, meanwhile, warned that weeks of intensive strikes and operations involving THAAD interceptors, Patriot systems and Tomahawk cruise missiles have significantly depleted American stockpiles.

The Pentagon has since accelerated efforts to replenish inventories with lower-cost mass-produced weapons developed by newer defense firms rather than by relying exclusively on traditional military contractors.

The reported push for greater Emirati involvement also comes amid a broader reluctance among US allies to deepen their direct participation in the conflict. While Washington has pressed partners for greater military involvement against Iran, including naval operations in the Strait of Hormuz, several European NATO members, such as Germany, Spain, and the UK, have publicly distanced themselves from the war.

The UAE has emerged as one of the regional states that moved closest to Washington and Israel during the war. Tehran has accused Abu Dhabi of serving as a “hostile base” for US and Israeli operations, retaliating at targets in the Emirates.

Emirati forces have reportedly carried out covert strikes on Iranian targets, including attacks on Lavan Island in April.

Three civilians were killed and more than a dozen others were wounded by a large-scale Ukrainian drone attack on the Russian capital and the surrounding region on Saturday night, the local authorities have said.

Moscow Mayor Sergey Sobyanian said on social media on Sunday morning that a total of 127 UAVs were destroyed by air defenses during the previous 24 hours. He described the raid as “massive.”

The attack appears to be one of the largest Ukrainian drone raids targeting Moscow in more than a year.

There have been several major UAV attacks on the capital in recent months, but the number of drones deployed by Ukraine never exceeded 65.

Fatalities in Moscow Region

Moscow Region Governor Andrey Vorobyev confirmed that three people were killed during the attack.

Two men died when the debris of a downed drone fell on a home construction site in the village of Pogorelki near the city of Mytishchi next to Moscow in the northeast, he said.

Another UAV struck an apartment block, killing a female resident in the city of Khimki, northwest of the capital, while another person was trapped under the rubble, according to Vorobyev.

Moment a Ukrainian drone crashes into a residential building in Moscow. https://t.co/vEcAt6Pf5M pic.twitter.com/q0ZEdHpV2R

— Woofers (@NotWoofers) May 17, 2026

In Istra, around 50 km northwest of Moscow, four people were wounded when an apartment block and six private homes were hit, he said.

Residential areas and infrastructure facilities have also been targeted in other parts of the region, the governor added.

In the town of Lobnya, north of Moscow, a woman was injured in a drone attack that damaged five apartment blocks and 20 cars, the local authorities said.

Three Indian nationals were also wounded and one was killed in a drone strike in Moscow Region, the Indian Embassy in Russia has said. It is not immediately clear whether the tally includes the Indian nationals.

Strike on Moscow Oil Refinery

A total of 12 people were wounded in Moscow as a result of the raid, according to Sobyanin.

Most of those injured were construction workers affected by an explosion near the entrance to the Moscow Oil Refinery in Kapotnya District in the northeast of the city, he said. The refinery’s operations weren’t affected by the incident, he added.

Air traffic disruptions

More than 200 flights were delayed or canceled at Moscow’s Sheremetyevo and Vnukovo international airports as the authorities introduced air traffic restrictions during the drone raid. Some of the incoming passenger jets had to be redirected to other airfields.

Incursions across Russia

The capital and Moscow Region weren’t the only targets of Ukrainian UAVs on Sunday night, with the Russian Defense Ministry reporting the destruction of a total of 586 drones across the country.

The additional interceptions took place not only in parts of Russia bordering Ukraine (Belgorod, Kursk, and Bryansk regions) but also deep inside the country, including Kaluga, Tula, Smolensk, Pskov, Tver, Rostov, and Krasnodar regions, as well as over Crimea, the Black Sea, and the Sea of Azov, the ministry said.

Escalation of raids in recent months

Ukrainian drone raids deep inside Russia have intensified since mid-March, with Kiev launching hundreds of fixed-wing UAVs on an almost daily basis against residential neighborhoods, civilian infrastructure, and industrial facilities far from the front.

Russian officials have described the aerial incursions as “terrorist attacks” meant to compensate for the setbacks the Ukrainian military has been suffering on the battlefield.
Russia has responded with long-range missile and drone strikes targeting Ukraine’s military, energy, and other dual-use infrastructure, and has said the operations are aimed solely at assets supporting Kiev’s war effort and not at civilian targets.

On Sunday, Ukrainian media and Telegram channels reported more explosions near Kiev, as well as in the cities of Kharkov and Dnepr, and parts of Zaporozhye Region which remain under Ukraine’s control.

An amateur cycling race taking riders through the "Golden Circle" surrounding Moscow has begun in the city of Kostroma, launching a summer-long series of mass events.

Around 2,400 riders are expected to take part in the 504 km “Rossiya” competition, which combines cycling with tourism and cultural events along Russia’s Golden Ring route, known for its historic towns and UNESCO-listed landmarks.

The race involves eight stages passing through Vladimir, Suzdal, Yaroslavl, Ivanovo, Kalyazin, Nizhny Novgorod, Sergiev Posad, and Moscow, where the finale will take place on September 12.

The project is backed by the Russian Cycling Federation, the Sports Ministry and Liga Geroev (“League of Heroes”), a company known for organizing large amateur sports events and obstacle races across Russia. While aimed mainly at amateur cyclists, experienced semi-professional riders are also expected to join.

The “Rossiya” race first launched in June 2025 with a three-stage event through Murom, Vladimir and Suzdal in Vladimir Region. Organizers hope it will grow into Russia’s biggest amateur cycling series, similar to popular mass-participation races held across Europe, attracting riders from across the country and eventually from abroad as well.

Three people were killed in a Ukrainian drone raid on Moscow Region overnight, Governor Andrey Vorobyev has said.

Air defenses in the area have been repelling a “major” UAV attack since 3:00 AM local time, Vorobyev wrote in a post on Telegram on Sunday morning.

Two men lost their lives when the debris of a downed drone fell on a home construction site in the village of Pogorelki near the city of Mytishchi, northeast of Moscow, he said.

In the city of Khimki, northwest of the capital, a UAV struck an apartment block, killing a female resident, according to the governor. Another person remains trapped under the rubble, with rescuers working on site, he added.

Four people were wounded when an apartment block and six private homes were hit in the city of Istra, Vorobyev said.

Moscow Mayor Sergey Sobyanin wrote on Telegram that 12 people in the capital were wounded as a result of the drone raid. A total of 120 UAVs targeting Moscow have been intercepted over the past 24 hours, he added.

Ukrainian drone incursions into Russia have intensified since mid-March, with Ukraine deploying hundreds of fixed-wing UAVs on almost a daily basis, targeting critical infrastructure, manufacturing facilities, and residential areas.

Officials in Moscow have described the raids as “terrorist attacks” meant to compensate for the setbacks the Ukrainian military has been suffering on the battlefield.

UK Prime Minister Keir Starmer is considering resigning amid a deepening political crisis in the ruling Labour Party, according to Daily Mail journalist Dan Hodges.

Starmer became prime minister after leading Labour to a landslide victory in the 2024 general election. Less than two years later, however, his government is facing falling approval ratings, internal divisions, and growing pressure following the party’s poor performance in recent local elections.

In a column published on Saturday, Hodges cited an unnamed cabinet minister as saying that Starmer “understands the political reality” and is considering arranging his departure on his own terms.

“He realizes the current chaos is unsustainable. He simply wants to be able to do it in a dignified way and in a manner of his own choosing. He will set out a timetable,” the source said.

Pressure on Starmer intensified after four junior ministers resigned on Monday. According to the BBC, more than 80 Labour MPs have privately or publicly urged the prime minister to step down, although more than 100 backbenchers and junior ministers later signed a statement arguing that it was “no time for a leadership contest.”

Starmer has remained defiant in public and has indicated that he has no intention of resigning.

“The country expects us to get on with governing. That is what I am doing and what we must do as a cabinet,” he said earlier this week.

The UK has experienced repeated political upheaval since the 2016 Brexit referendum, with four Tory prime ministers serving over the following eight years before Starmer took office. Theresa May, Boris Johnson, and Liz Truss all resigned after internal party revolts.

France has opened an investigation into the murder of Saudi dissident Jamal Khashoggi after NGOs accused Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman of complicity in the killing.

The 59-year-old journalist and Washington Post columnist was killed in 2018 while visiting the Saudi consulate in Istanbul, Turkey. His body is believed to have been dismembered and was never recovered.

Saudi authorities acknowledged that Khashoggi was killed inside the consulate but insisted that rogue officials carried out the operation without authorization from the leadership.

In July 2022, Democracy for the Arab World Now (DAWN) – Khashoggi’s former organization – and Reporters Without Borders (RSF) filed a legal complaint accusing Mohammed bin Salman of complicity in torture and enforced disappearance as part of an organized group. The complaint alleged that he had ordered “the murder by asphyxiation” of Khashoggi.

The Paris Court of Appeal has now ruled that “the possibility that these acts could be classified as crimes against humanity cannot be ruled out.”

“An investigating judge from the crimes against humanity unit will now examine the complaint,” the prosecutor’s office told AFP on Saturday.

Khashoggi once served as an adviser to the Saudi government and was close to the royal family before becoming a prominent critic of the kingdom’s leadership and relocating to the US. KSA prosecutors said the journalist died after being forcibly restrained and injected with an overdose of drugs during what they described as a failed attempt to persuade him to return to Saudi Arabia.

A US intelligence report released by the Biden administration in 2021 concluded that Mohammed bin Salman exercised “absolute control” over the kingdom and that Saudi security organizations had approved an operation to “capture or kill” Khashoggi. The Kingdom rejected the assessment as “false and unacceptable.”

US President Donald Trump, however, said last year that the crown prince “knew nothing” about the plan to kill the journalist.

Bulgarian singer Dara has defied bookmakers’ expectations and won this year’s Eurovision Song Contest in Vienna, which was otherwise noteworthy for pro-Palestinian protests and an unprecedented boycott over Israel’s participation.

Spain, the Netherlands, Ireland, Iceland, and Slovenia shunned the international event this year due to West Jerusalem’s military campaigns in Gaza and in Lebanon – the biggest boycott in Eurovision’s 70-year history.

Last month, more than 1,100 musicians and cultural workers, including Brian Eno, Massive Attack, Kneecap, and Primal Scream among others, likewise signed an open letter calling for a boycott and accusing event organizers of helping Israel to whitewash and normalize its “genocide” in Gaza and Lebanon.

Nevertheless, Israel’s Noam Bettan came in second after the final tally, combining the jury’s ranking and an audience score, was announced on Saturday.

Pro-Palestinian protesters booed and jeered during Bettan’s performance of the ballad Michelle, with at least one Palestinian flag unfurled and chants of “Stop the genocide!” heard in the background.

🚨 The Palestinian flag is an icon of celebrations and events: “The Palestinian flag was raised directly in front of Israeli artists during the Eurovision Song Contest.” pic.twitter.com/4Lm9M53Tt1

— The Middle East (@A_M_R_M1) May 16, 2026

Outside the venue, a pro-Palestinian march was also held in the Austrian capital on Saturday. 

Tens of thousands are occupying the streets of Vienna today. The demand is clear: No Eurovision spot for Israel while the massacre in Palestine continues. The streets are speaking louder than the music. 📢👀#Vienna #Palestine #Eurovision #Protest pic.twitter.com/MR05smPXdR

— Sezen Ada (@bluemoonyellows) May 16, 2026

Earlier this year, the national broadcasters of Spain, the Netherlands, Ireland, Iceland, and Slovenia raised concerns with the European Broadcasting Union over alleged vote-rigging by Israel last year, when singer Yuval Raphael got second place.

According to a recent investigation by the New York Times, citing voting data and Eurovision documents, Raphael won the popular vote in several countries where the public is predominantly critical of Israel.

According to the newspaper, the Israeli government mounted a well-organized campaign, placing advertisements in multiple languages and mobilizing pro-Israel groups to vote for the singer.

Israel launched its military campaign against Hamas in Gaza following the militant group’s deadly incursion into the country in October 2023, which left 1,200 people dead and 250 others taken hostage.

According to the Palestinian authorities, the Israeli military’s heavy-handed response has claimed nearly 70,000 Palestinian lives.

Meanwhile, Russia has been banned from Eurovision since the escalation of the Ukraine conflict in 2022. Moscow has responded by reviving Intervision, a Soviet-era alternative touted by the Kremlin as a music contest reflecting more “traditional values.”

The Pentagon has canceled plans to deploy 4,000 troops to Poland amid growing tensions between President Donald Trump and US allies over policy regarding Iran.

AP reported on Friday that some soldiers from the 2nd Armored Brigade Combat Team, 1st Cavalry Division – along with Abrams tanks and Bradley fighting vehicles – had already arrived in Poland or were en route when the Pentagon informed them that the deployment had been canceled.

General Christopher LaNeve, the acting army chief of staff, told Congress that the head of US European Command “received instructions on the force reduction.” He added that “it made the most sense for that brigade not to deploy to the theater.”

More than 10,000 US military personnel are stationed in Poland on a rotational basis.

Although Trump has frequently accused NATO members of failing to spend enough on defense, US Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth recently described Poland as a “model ally” after it spent about 4.7% of GDP on defense last year – more than other NATO members.

Earlier in May, the Pentagon announced the withdrawal of 5,000 troops from the roughly 38,000 US service members stationed in Germany. German Chancellor Friedrich Merz has been among the European leaders critical of US and Israeli policy toward Iran. Trump, in turn, urged the chancellor to focus on “fixing his broken country.”

Trump has also suggested he could withdraw troops from Spain and Italy after the two countries reportedly denied the use of bases and airfields for strikes related to Iran.

The Ukrainian military repeatedly attacked Russia’s Zaporozhye Nuclear Power Plant (ZNPP) this week, injuring two employees and targeting a pipeline in the immediate vicinity of the reactors, Aleksey Likhachev, CEO of the Russian state nuclear corporation Rosatom, has said.

Speaking to the company’s corporate newspaper Strana Rosatom on Saturday, Likhachev said that a Ukrainian drone had attacked the pipeline running along the power units of the plant earlier in the day. The UAV did not detonate, crashing near the first power unit of the facility.

On Thursday, a Ukrainian kamikaze drone targeted a car carrying two employees of the ZNPP. The attack occurred just 100 meters away from the plant’s premises, with both employees receiving moderate to serious wounds, the Rosatom boss said. 

“The employees were carrying out their duties at the time. Even this didn’t stop the enemy. For an hour, combat drones prevented ambulances from reaching the attack site, and the evacuation of the wounded resembled a military operation,” Likhachev stated.

The CEO slammed the inaction of the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA), stating that it has been doing its best to “de facto turn a blind eye to daily Ukrainian attacks on the ZNPP, civilian infrastructure, and killings of Russian nationals by Ukrainian servicemen.” Moscow will address the continuing incidents around the plant during upcoming consultations with the IAEA leadership scheduled for July, Likhachev said. 

In recent weeks, the Ukrainian military has ramped up attacks on the plant, which fell under Moscow’s control early in the conflict and was taken over by Rosatom after Zaporozhye Region was incorporated into Russia following a referendum in late 2022. Moscow has repeatedly urged Kiev and its backers to stop targeting the facility, warning the attacks could result in a continent-wide nuclear catastrophe.

The US and Israel are actively preparing for a renewal of hostilities with Iran and could resume attacks as early as next week, The New York Times has reported, citing sources.

Indirect negotiations between Iran and the Trump White House have remained deadlocked since a fragile ceasefire was established in April following over a month of hostilities. Both sides have repeatedly dismissed the other’s demands as unrealistic, and both Tehran and Washington still insist they hold the upper hand.

Meanwhile, disruptions continue in the Strait of Hormuz, which has heavily affected global shipping and caused oil shortages worldwide. While Iran has announced its own mechanism to regulate maritime traffic in the waterway, Washington has rejected the scheme and is enforcing a naval blockade on Iranian ports in retaliation.

Two unnamed Middle East officials told the NYT on Friday that preparations for new strikes by Israel and the US have greatly accelerated over the past few days, and the conflict could resume as early as next week, according to the sources.

US President Donald Trump has repeatedly threatened to renew the attack on Iran, increasingly voicing his dissatisfaction with Tehran’s proposals. Trump tore into Iran’s response to an American proposal last weekend, branding it a “piece of garbage” and slamming the current ceasefire as “unbelievably weak.”

Tehran says it is ready to “deliver a well-deserved response to any aggression.” It has expressed wariness about the stalled negotiations but shown willingness to engage in diplomacy nonetheless. 

“We have every reason not to trust the Americans,” Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi said on Friday. “There is no military solution, and the US must understand this reality. They cannot achieve their goals through military action, but the situation would be different if they pursue diplomacy.”

At least twelve people have sustained injuries, with four reportedly in critical condition, after a car rammed into them in the Italian city of Modena.

The driver, described by the media as a “highly intoxicated” man of North African descent, was reportedly armed with a knife, and stabbed a person before being subdued by bystanders.

While the motive remains unclear for the time being, terrorism is not being ruled out, according to Italian newspaper La Pressa.

Two of the injured have reportedly been rushed to a hospital by helicopter, with one woman having both legs amputated after being crushed against a wall by the speeding vehicle.

The driver, identified by local media outlets as Salim el Koudriv, a 31-year-old Italian citizen of Moroccan origin, then attempted to flee the scene on foot, blending in with the panicked crowd. However, several bystanders gave chase.

La Gazzetta di Modena quoted one of the pursuers, Luca Signorelli, as describing how the suspect stabbed him when he approached him.

“I managed to avoid the first, but I took the other. I didn’t let go, locking his wrist and disarming him, and with the help of five or six other people, I managed to subdue him,” Signorelli, who sustained light injuries, told the newspaper.

The suspect was subsequently handed over to the police and brought in for questioning.

In a video message on social media, Modena mayor Massimo Mezzetti thanked the “citizens who chased [the suspect, for displaying]…courage and civic-mindedness.”

Following the incident, there was a heavy law enforcement presence at the scene, with the national police conducting the investigation.

Rudyard Kipling, a modern classic of the Western literary canon, was both a champion of British imperialism and too honest not to know its very sordid underpinnings of greed, lies, and sheer selfishness.

That’s why the same man who extolled the “white man’s burden” also wrote ‘The Man Who Would Be King,’ a story of two lowlife, ambitious adventurers who manage to swindle their way to becoming kings as well as rich in a remote country on the fringes of the empire, then at its late-nineteenth-century zenith of global primacy. Until, that is, one of them makes the mistake of messing with the wrong woman, who ends up biting him in public. Seeing him bleed, his subjects realize he is a mere mortal and mercilessly dispense with the two imposters.

Ukraine’s ruler – and de facto king (of the old-fashioned, non-constitutional kind) – Vladimir Zelensky is a social climber, too. In his formative years, his native Krivoy Rog was a provincial post-Soviet rustbelt town with a lively gangster scene, a “bandit city” in his own words. Zelensky is also an expert in make-believe by profession, a cynically profane showman of the ‘give-them-whatever-they-want-as-long-as-it-pays’ variety, the cruder and smuttier the better.

Indeed, Zelensky even has a sidekick, who, as in Kipling’s dark story, has shared in the scheme of power-grabbing and plunder: Andrey Yermak, his former chief of staff and very intimate friend, making headlines (again) for being so corrupt and sinister that he stands out, even in Kiev.

And now Zelensky, the man who, it seems, would be Ukraine’s president forever, has just been bitten in public by a woman. Judging by the fierce, clearly orchestrated reaction of his media propagandists in Ukraine and the fact that the Western mainstream media are largely pretending not to have noticed, he must be bleeding, too.

That has made it a very public bloodletting indeed. What Mendel has had to say is one thing, her ability to reach breathtaking numbers of Americans and other inhabitants of the West is at least as important and, from Kiev’s point of view, frustrating: Across various platforms, shows of the Tucker Carlson Network (TCN) are watched by, on average, over 55 million viewers, dwarfing, for instance, Fox News (Carlson’s former employer) with its prime time rating of 3.2 million.

Recently, the Israeli-US war against Iran has further undermined public confidence in the mainstream media and boosted TCN. “Explosive growth” in the two first months of the war has produced over 1.5 billion “views across social media and podcast platforms.” Indeed, TCN is on such a roll that Carlson is now rumored to be a contender for the presidency, and he has not ruled out a run.

This is the amplifier for Mendel’s harsh memo to the US and the West. It is hard to think of a bigger one. And what a message she had to deliver.

Consider a few highlights: Speaking, she underlined, as “an insider,” from her own close experience with Zelensky and the inner circle of his regime, Mendel has told us all that she believes Zelensky personally “stands behind many schemes of money laundering” and that he has always remained an “amazing actor” whose image “on camera” is “very different” from his real self.

For instance, while he is posturing as not merely some democrat but a shining epitome of democracy as well as everything else that is good and beautiful, such as rule of law, freedom of speech, civil society, and national unity, his real view, relentlessly repeated behind closed doors, is, as we learn from Mendel, that “Ukraine is not ready for democracy” and “dictatorship is an order,” too.

Zelensky’s profound hypocrisy permeates his private life and politics. Mendel reveals, for instance, that he was still going on trips to Crimea – to have fun with friends and drugs – while it was already under Russian control. In December 2019, he privately told Russian President Vladimir Putin that Ukraine would never join NATO. While Zelensky’s public poll ratings are steadily declining, the polls produced for internal use are so bad that even some of his fixers privately admit that he is “unelectable.”

With no respect for the truth, Zelensky’s attitude to reality itself seems broken, even deranged. From her own conversations with him, Mendel reports that Ukraine’s leader believes that “it doesn’t matter what is [actually] happening.” Things, he has argued behind closed doors, become real when they are said often enough by enough propagandists or, as she quotes him, by “thousands of talking heads.” Considering this bizarre outlook, it is revealing and revolting but also somehow, sadly consistent that Zelensky, who is Jewish, has literally demanded “Goebbels”-type “propaganda” from his communications team.

Beyond a ruthless and deliberate regime of lying and manipulation, there also is pressure and compulsion. Again, Mendel’s catalogue of Zelensky’s dictatorial strong-arm methods is depressing and plausible: from threats to perfectly illegal “sanctions” imposed via Zelensky’s personal fiat, to lawfare and process-as-punishment to long and open-ended jail terms to sending critics to the frontline as a punishment to very odd lethal accidents – Zelensky and his regime have, as Mendel puts it, “no limits.” Their rule has established a situation that is “inhuman.”

Mendel is believable. Zelensky regime propagandists, in Ukraine and the West, have, unsurprisingly, smeared her as, in effect, a Russian asset, as reproducing “Russian narratives” and, worst sin of them all, sharing Kiev’s very dirty secrets with the West. Because – this seems to be the underlying logic – the West must share hundreds of billions with Zelensky and his ultra-corrupt cronies, but no one has a right to share the truth about them with the West.

Even in the interview with Tucker Carlson, Mendel has made a point of carefully distinguishing between what she has seen herself and what she knows from – extremely strong – circumstantial evidence, for instance, that Zelensky has a long-standing cocaine habit.

And yet, by now Mendel – who displays no favor at all to Russia – considers Zelensky an evil and the key obstacle to peace for Ukraine. This peace, she warns, is the only alternative to what she calls being “on the verge of extinction.” She means it quite literally: There are far fewer Ukrainians left in the country than official statistics admit, perhaps 25 million, including 11 million impoverished pensioners. The only way to really support Ukraine, Mendel insists, is to “push for peace.”

Yet this is where, unfortunately, Ukraine’s would-be king is different from Kipling’s adventurers. They at least had no support from the empire on the fringe of which they ran their scheme of mass manipulation and self-enrichment. When their subjects lost their illusions, they fell.

Zelensky and his crew, however, still enjoy massive, cynical support from the West, even if it is now Germany and no longer the US that is in the lead. Perhaps Zelensky’s rule and its mistreatment of Ukraine and ordinary Ukrainians can only end when he loses his last Western backers. Until then, Mendel can make them bleed, but Ukrainians alone, it seems, will find it hard to shake them off.

Sloppy decision-making and an inability to agree on key issues have rendered the EU effectively irrelevant on the global stage, the bloc’s former foreign policy chief Josep Borrell has argued.

The former top diplomat made the remarks in an interview with Belgian broadcaster RTBF on Friday, somewhat echoing the stance of European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen. The top official, who has been in power since 2019, has repeatedly urged the bloc to remove individual member states’ veto powers and move to qualified majority voting on foreign policy and defense issues.

The bloc’s decision-making process has become inadequate in its ability to react to the ever-shifting global situation, Borrell has said, arguing the EU “was not designed for the world in which we live today” in the first place. 

“The decision-making rules are not compatible with the acceleration of history. We continue to want to decide unanimously on events that are happening too fast and are very important, and we almost never reach an agreement,” he said, adding that the current system makes the bloc “not very relevant to international politics.”

“We need to build a union within the union. A union within the union means that with 27 members, even with unanimity, we won’t go any further. We’re held back. With 27, we won’t accomplish much. So we need to find another core group. Not the 27,” he said.

The former top diplomat, however, did not outline the exact criteria for the potential members of said group, stating it should be composed of the “few who truly want to move forward with political, economic, and military integration” and those “who want to go further, faster.”

Last week, the idea to abandon the EU’s unanimity principle was backed by Berlin, with German Foreign Minister Johann Wadephul arguing that a switch to a qualified majority voting would “make the EU capable of acting in areas where it currently has to remain at a standstill.” The initiative has already been backed by at least 12 EU member states, according to Wadephul.

US President Donald Trump has announced that Abu-Bilal al-Minuki, second in command of Islamic State (IS, formerly ISIS/ISIL) worldwide, has been killed in Nigeria on his orders.

The operation comes as Washington seeks to reassert its influence in Africa’s volatile Sahel region where a string of military coups and growing anti-Western sentiment have weakened the positions of the US and its European allies.

Al-Minuki was eliminated overnight as a result of “a meticulously planned and very complex” joint mission by American and Nigerian forces, Trump wrote in a post on his Truth Social platform on Saturday.

The US president said that the senior IS commander, whom he described as “the most active terrorist in the world… thought he could hide in Africa, but little did he know we had sources who kept us informed on what he was doing.” 

“He will no longer terrorize the people of Africa, or help plan operations to target Americans. With his removal, ISIS’s global operation is greatly diminished,” he wrote.

Nigerian President Bola Ahmed Tinubu said in a post on X that al-Minuki was killed together with several of his lieutenants in a strike at an Islamic State compound in the Lake Chad Basin.

US Africa Command (AFRICOM) later released aerial footage of the bombardment.

Last night's operation targeted a significant presence of ISIS fighters in Northeastern Nigeria eliminating multiple high value individuals including Abu-Bilal al-Minuki. pic.twitter.com/lNj4AMSITH

— U.S. Africa Command (AFRICOM) (@USAfricaCommand) May 16, 2026

Washington labeled Al-Minuki, who is a Nigerian national, a “specially designated global terrorist” in 2023 under the administration of then President Joe Biden. The State Department said that he was part of an administrative body within IS that provides “operational guidance and funding around the world.” 

Shortly after that, the US carried out airstrikes targeting Islamic State-linked militants in Nigeria. It was followed by Washington sending 200 American troops to provide training and intelligence to the Nigerian forces fighting the jihadists. The US servicemen remained in a strictly non-combat role, according to the authorities.

In 2019, during Trump’s first term, he announced the killing of Islamic State founder and leader Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi in a US special forces raid in Syria.

Despite decades of American counterterrorism operations, jihadist violence continues to spread across parts of the Middle East and West Africa, with militant groups capitalizing on weak governance, poverty, and political instability.

Russia and China are moving, slowly but unmistakably, toward a structural alliance that is reshaping the global balance of power. But the two sides are progressing through this transformation at different speeds. Moscow has largely accepted the logic of deep strategic interdependence. Beijing, by contrast, still behaves as though it can preserve a carefully managed partnership in which China remains the senior partner while minimizing its own obligations.

That model is reaching its limits. For years, the dominant narrative in Western policy circles has been that Russia has become the junior partner in an unequal relationship. Brussels think tanks, Washington analysts and even many Chinese commentators have repeated the same formula: Russia supplies raw materials and China supplies everything else.

Berlin-based MERICS has described the relationship as “fundamentally unbalanced” and Intereconomics called it “symbiotic but deeply asymmetrical.” Other researchers have portrayed the Russia-China-US triangle as one in which Washington still holds the decisive advantage.

Yet this interpretation misses something important. Even while Western analysts obsessively measured asymmetry, many Chinese scholars privately acknowledged that the relationship was being driven less by hierarchy than by geopolitical pressure.

Professor Feng Shaolei of East China Normal University has argued that external circumstances, rather than relative status, have always been the true engine of the partnership. NATO expansion pushed Moscow and Beijing closer together while US tariffs accelerated the process further. Sanctions pressure on Russia gave China discounted resources and gave Russia guaranteed markets as each side increasingly possessed what the other lacked.

Agriculture has become another strategic pillar as Russia, now the world’s leading wheat exporter, signed a long-term agreement in 2023 to supply China with 70 million tonnes of grain and oilseeds over a twelve-year period.

And unlike Middle Eastern energy routes, Russian pipelines don’t pass through vulnerable maritime chokepoints. That reality became far more important once the geopolitical environment deteriorated.

Washington’s strategy was straightforward: isolate Russia financially while frightening China into limiting cooperation through the threat of secondary sanctions. By late 2023 and early 2024, major Chinese financial institutions including Bank of China and CITIC had sharply reduced direct transactions with Russian entities after new US restrictions were announced.

The pressure had some effect. Chinese state energy companies cut purchases temporarily after sanctions against Rosneft and Lukoil in early 2025. Shandong Port Group banned sanctioned vessels from entering its terminals. Western analysts celebrated what they described as growing Chinese caution.

But the strategy contained a fundamental weakness. Secondary sanctions work only when alternatives exist and once instability threatened key global energy routes, particularly the Strait of Hormuz, Russia’s role changed dramatically. Roughly a third of global seaborne oil trade passes through Hormuz, while more than half of China’s imported oil comes from the Middle East. In those circumstances, Russian pipelines stopped being merely commercial infrastructure and became a strategic necessity.

As several Chinese analysts have noted, Russia and China may each be vulnerable separately, but together they possess the capacity to counterbalance American power. For most of the last three years, however, the relationship has remained stuck in a bargaining phase. Publicly, both sides speak of a “partnership without limits.” In practice, the relationship has often been slowed by caution and endless technical complications.

During Vladimir Putin’s visit to Beijing in September 2025, the two countries signed more than twenty agreements covering energy, aerospace, artificial intelligence, agriculture and industrial technology. The headline figures looked impressive. Analysts estimated the announced value of Russian-Chinese investment projects at more than $200 billion.

Yet many of these projects remain only partially implemented as Chinese businesses continue to calculate the costs of sanctions exposure carefully. Beijing has often preferred opportunistic gains over genuine strategic interdependence. Western researchers openly acknowledge this dynamic, arguing that China has benefited from the departure of Western competitors from Russia while avoiding commitments that would fully bind the two economies together.

The problem, however, is caution, not hostility, this has limits when geography and geopolitics are pushing both countries together.

In 2025, both sides entered a more sober phase. Bilateral trade declined by nearly 7% to $228 billion, the first major drop since the pandemic. The reasons were mostly economic rather than political. Falling oil prices sharply reduced the value of Russian exports despite relatively stable volumes.

Chinese media were unusually frank about the difficulties. Consumer demand in Russia weakened under high interest rates and Chinese car exports collapsed after an overheated boom period. Moscow’s growing import-substitution policies also began limiting opportunities for Chinese manufacturers.

Russia and China share more than 4,200 kilometers of border. One side possesses enormous energy reserves, agricultural resources, metals, territory and pipeline infrastructure largely immune from naval disruption. The other possesses industrial scale, capital, technology and a market of 1.4 billion people.

Neither can fully achieve its strategic ambitions alone and that is why the relationship continues to deepen despite friction.

When Xi Jinping visited Moscow for Victory Day commemorations in 2025, the two countries signed a joint declaration that went beyond symbolism. The document emphasized expanded settlements in national currencies, deeper investment cooperation and the joint development of the Northern Sea Route and this matters enormously.

The Arctic corridor offers China a long-term alternative to vulnerable maritime routes such as Suez and Hormuz. In a world where each of those chokepoints faces growing instability, the Northern Sea Route is becoming strategic infrastructure rather than an experimental trade project.

Chinese analysts increasingly recognize this reality. Academic discussions inside China now openly acknowledge that rivalry with the United States makes close partnership with Russia less a matter of preference than necessity.

This is because the partnership is no longer built merely on diplomatic convenience or temporary economic gains. It is being driven by structural forces: geography, energy security, trade routes, sanctions pressure and the emergence of a more fragmented global order.

Russia and China are joining together because the strategic logic is becoming overwhelming, yet one major obstacle remains.

China still often behaves as though it can enjoy the benefits of strategic partnership without fully committing itself to the burdens that come with it. Moscow has already integrated Beijing deeply into critical sectors ranging from energy to logistics and food security. But many major Chinese investments and technology commitments continue to move cautiously or remain delayed.

At some point, Beijing will have to decide whether it truly views Russia as an equal strategic partner or merely as a useful resource base operating on China’s periphery.

That question now defines the future of the partnership and the answer will shape the architecture of Eurasia for decades to come.

Large crowds have descended upon central London for an anti-immigration rally dubbed ‘Unite the Kingdom’. Videos and photographs circulating on social media on Saturday showed demonstrators with Union Jack flags, crosses, and other Christian symbols marching through the streets of the British capital.

Ahead of the event, local media, citing the authorities, reported that an estimated 50,000 people were expected to take part. Another large-scale demonstration, a pro-Palestinian march marking Nakba Day, was taking place in London concurrently with the ‘Unite the Kingdom’ rally, as well as the FA Cup. Some 4,000 officers were deployed to maintain public order in the British capital, according to London’s Metropolitan Police.

A few hours after both demonstrations came to a close on Saturday afternoon, the authorities reported on X that a total of 43 arrests had been made, though both gatherings “proceeded largely without significant incident.”

Arrests have begun at the far-right Unite the Kingdom rally in central London today.

Ryan Bridge, co-founder of the “Raise the Colours” movement — whose members attach flags to lampposts and engage in anti-migrant vigilantism — has been arrested by the Met Police.

5Pillars is… pic.twitter.com/Ul5n2BaBad

— 5Pillars (@5Pillarsuk) May 16, 2026

‘Unite the Kingdom’ demonstration organizer Tommy Robinson, a British anti-immigration activist whose real name is Stephen Yaxley-Lennon, called on his supporters to “GO HOME SAFELY,” proclaiming in an X post of his own that “WE WON.”

Ahead of Saturday’s anti-immigration rally in London, UK Prime Minister Keir Starmer announced that several foreign activists and commentators had been denied entry to Britain. According to Downing Street, eleven people were blocked because their presence was considered “not conducive to the public good.”

Reports suggest over 80,000 patriots have arrived in London for Unite The Kingdom with thousands more are still on their way. pic.twitter.com/aeHlEeZixM

— dks pros (@dkspros) May 16, 2026

Starmer stated on Thursday that the authorities would not permit anyone to “spread hate on our streets,” according to remarks published by the UK government. The restrictions drew criticism from supporters of the march, who accused the authorities of attempting to suppress political dissent and limit attendance.

Tarczynski, however, did join the protesters via video link, drawing cheers from the crowd. The Polish lawmaker from the conservative Law and Justice party said among other things: “He could ban me. He will not cancel you. And believe me, there will be a day I will be back.”

🚨BREAKING: MET police reports indicate that MILLIONS of patriots are on the streets of London for Unite the kingdom.

'Who's streets our streets'

Britain is wide awake 🇬🇧 pic.twitter.com/eieVS1ertY

— God Save Great Britain (@GSGB01) May 16, 2026

Addressing the attendees, Robinson, for his part, referred to the 2029 general elections as nothing short of the “battle for Britain.”

“If we don’t send a message in our next election, if you don’t register to vote, if you don’t get involved, if you don’t become activists, we are going to lose our country forever,” he said.

The right-wing activist urged his supporters to “get political,” and “join a political party.”

“I don’t care if it’s Reform, if it’s Advance, or it’s Restore, or it’s the Conservative Party. We have to locally get involved in politics,” Robinson proclaimed.

German Chancellor Friedrich Merz has said he will no longer recommend the United States as a destination for his children to study or work, citing what he described as a worsening “social climate” in America.

Speaking at a Catholic youth conference in Wuerzburg on Friday, the conservative leader said the US had become deeply polarized and a less appealing destination for young people.

“I am a great admirer of America,” Merz said during a panel discussion. “At the moment my admiration is not growing.” Merz also argued that even highly educated Americans were increasingly struggling to find employment, suggesting the US was no longer the “land of opportunity” it once was.

"I wouldn’t recommend to my children today that they go to the US, get an education there, and work there,” he said.

Nearly half of young graduates are now working in jobs that do not require degrees, while hiring for entry-level professional roles has slowed sharply, according to The Washington Post. At the same time, white-collar layoffs in sectors such as tech, finance, and corporate services have accelerated amid AI adoption and corporate cost-cutting.

Merz’s remarks are notable because he has long been regarded as one of Germany’s most pro-American conservative politicians, having previously championed close transatlantic ties and worked extensively with US financial giant BlackRock. They also come amid a public spat with US President Donald Trump over the war in Iran.

In April, Merz said Washington had been “humiliated” by Iran’s leadership, arguing it lacked a coherent strategy for the conflict. Trump responded by telling the German chancellor to focus on Germany’s domestic problems and the Ukraine conflict instead of criticizing US policy.

Germany continues to host critical US command centers, air bases, and logistics hubs central to NATO operations, highlighting Berlin’s continued reliance on the US despite increasingly strained relations.

Moscow has made it easier for residents of Transnistria, a de facto self-governing region of Moldova, to obtain Russian citizenship, according to a decree signed by Russian President Vladimir Putin on Friday.

The measure applies to “foreign citizens and stateless persons” permanently residing in Transnistria. It aims “to protect human rights and freedoms” of the region’s residents in line with “international legal norms,” the decree states.

The move comes amid growing political and economic pressure on the predominantly Russian-speaking region from authorities in Chisinau and their Western backers, in what Moldova has described as a policy of “reintegration.”

WHAT IS TRANSNISTRIA?

Transnistria is a self-governed breakaway region located along the Dniester River in Moldova, a former Soviet republic located between Ukraine and Romania.

The region broke away from Moldova after a brief war in the early 1990s and has remained under the protection of a joint Russian-Transnistrian-Moldovan peacekeeping force ever since.

Moldova has charted an increasingly anti-Russian and pro-EU course since President Maia Sandu came to power in 2020. The country applied for EU membership shortly after the escalation of the Ukraine conflict in 2022, obtained candidate status the same year and formally opened accession talks with Brussels in 2024.

In October 2025, the Moldovan government adopted a new security strategy identifying Russia as the country’s main threat. Moscow warned at the time that the nation’s leadership was “making a grave mistake” by increasingly antagonizing the Kremlin.

LANGUAGE

Language has become one of the most sensitive issues between Chisinau and Transnistria.
Despite it being widely spoken, Russian lost its status as a “language of inter-ethnic communication” in 2021, and Romanian became Moldova’s sole official tongue.

Tensions have grown as Moldova’s pro-EU leadership has increasingly promoted Romanian-language integration. Among the latest measures are new restrictions on the use of Russian in Moldova’s parliament, which were introduced earlier this month, under which bills will no longer be routinely translated into the language.

ENERGY SECURITY

The Ukraine conflict has severely undermined Transnistria’s energy security. For decades, the region relied on free or heavily subsidized Russian gas delivered through Ukraine, which powered the Soviet-era Cuciurgan power station supplying electricity to much of Moldova, including the breakaway region. The arrangement had long formed the backbone of the enclave’s economy.

But the system collapsed in early 2025 after Kiev refused to extend a transit agreement allowing Russian gas deliveries through Ukraine. The disruption triggered the worst energy crisis in Transnistria since the 1990s.

TAXATION

Despite the ongoing crisis, Moldovan authorities have moved to increase pressure on Transnistrian businesses by introducing new taxes and gradually phasing out long-standing exemptions.

Under the measures, enterprises registered in Transnistria will increasingly be required to pay taxes and customs duties to Moldova’s state budget rather than solely local authorities. Transnistrian officials have condemned the policy as “double taxation” that could deepen the region’s economic crisis and trigger further businesses closures.

Moldovan leadership and the EU have repeatedly called for the withdrawal of Russian peacekeeping troops despite strong public support for the mission inside Transnistria. A poll conducted in the region in April suggested that 82.5% of residents support the continued presence of Moscow’s peacekeepers.

Authorities in Transnistria’s capital Tiraspol have rejected the possibility of troop withdrawal, arguing that the Russian military presence is “absolutely legal and legitimate” and remains a key part of the existing peacekeeping mechanism that has preserved stability for more than three decades.

Israel carried out strikes in Gaza targeting Hamas’ top military commander, Izz al-Din al-Haddad, Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and Defense Minister Israel Katz said in a joint statement. It marked the first attack on a senior official of the militant group since a US-backed deal in October intended to halt fighting in the Palestinian enclave.

The strikes on Friday killed at least seven people and wounded more than 50 others, who were taken to Al-Shifa Hospital, Gaza emergency services said. Neither side confirmed whether the Hamas leader was killed or wounded in the attack.

In a joint statement on Friday, Netanyahu and Katz said al-Haddad was among the “architects” of the Hamas-led October 7, 2023 attack and accused him of involvement in holding hostages taken during the assault. They also accused him of refusing to implement a plan promoted by US President Donald Trump for Hamas to disarm and for Gaza to be demilitarized.

Since the first phase of the ceasefire took effect last year, Israel has continued to carry out strikes in Gaza, much of which has been reduced to rubble. Under the truce, Israeli forces retained control of a largely depopulated zone covering more than half the enclave, while Hamas remained in control of the remaining coastal strip. Both sides have accused each other of violating the truce, and talks on advancing Trump’s post-war plan for Gaza remain deadlocked.

Since Israel launched its military campaign in the territory, more than 72,000 people have been killed and over 172,000 wounded over the past three years, according to the Palestinian health authorities.

Israel’s war against Hamas and its siege of Gaza have drawn growing international criticism, including threats of sanctions. Western support for Israel has also eroded amid rising civilian casualties and a worsening humanitarian crisis in the enclave.

Mercedes-Benz is considering engaging in defense production if it would make “business sense,” its CEO Ola Kallenius has told the Wall Street Journal.

The Munich-based company once manufactured military hardware on a large scale, before and during World War II. It began supplying trucks and airplane engines to the Nazis in 1937.

After Germany attacked the Soviet Union in 1941, all of the vehicles produced by Mercedes-Benz were sent to the army or to businesses viewed as essential for the war effort. During that period, almost half of the carmaker’s 63,000 employees were forced laborers, POWs and concentration camp inmates, according to the Mercedes-Benz’s website.

In his interview with the WSJ on Friday, Kallenius stressed that “the world has become a more unpredictable place, and I think it is absolutely clear that Europe needs to increase its defense profile. Should we be able to play a positive role in that, we would be willing to do so.”

According to the CEO, defense-related operations would likely constitute “a minor share” of Mercedes-Benz’s business, which would remain focused on making civilian cars.

Germany and other EU states have accelerated military spending and defense procurement in recent years, with Brussels urging member states to expand arms production and reduce reliance on US military supplies.

The push toward rearmament comes as Germany’s industrial sector struggles with weak growth, high energy costs and falling competitiveness, prompting some manufacturers to look at defense contracts as a new source of revenue.

In February, Mercedes-Benz reported a 57% drop in profit in 2025 compared to the previous year as European carmakers continue to struggle amid rising production costs caused by growing energy prices, supply chain disruptions, regulatory pressure and competition from Chinese companies.

The Financial Times reported in March that another German carmaker, Volkswagen, was in talks with Israel’s Rafael Advanced Defense Systems to convert its failing Osnabrueck plant to the production of air-defense missiles. A spokesman for VW denied the report.

In 2022, then-Chancellor Olaf Scholz unveiled a €100 billion ($113 billion) military modernization plan for the German armed forces. Der Spiegel reported last month that the Defense Ministry in Berlin had signed some 47,000 procurement contracts since then.

The European Union has taken yet another step in its long-running confrontation with Russia. But what now stands out is not only the scale – it is the restless, almost reflexive expansion of sanctions as a default instrument of policy.

In April, EU authorities unveiled their 20th round of sanctions targeting Russia and Belarus, while pointedly extending their reach toward China.

Sanctions spiral

What was once framed as a targeted response now resembles a sanctions regime without clear geographic or strategic limits. By including 56 designations tied to Russia’s military-industrial complex – 17 of them in China, the United Arab Emirates, Belarus, and Central Asia – the EU has effectively dissolved the boundaries of its own confrontation. Another 60 entities now face tightened export controls tied to alleged contributions to Russia’s defense sector.

For the first time, even a Chinese state-owned entity has been targeted by anti-Belarusian sanctions. In Brussels, this is justified through the language of “dual-use” goods. But outside Europe, the perception is of a growing tendency toward economic coercion that stretches legal authority across borders, fueled by an escalating appetite for pressure.

China’s response was swift: officials condemned what they described as “long-arm jurisdiction,” rejecting the EU’s attempt to discipline Chinese firms operating far beyond European territory. More importantly, Beijing read the move as a signal of the EU’s shifting posture toward China itself.

Within a day, China placed seven European entities on its control list over arms sales to Taiwan, imposing restrictions that mirror the EU’s own extraterritorial reach. These measures prohibit the transfer of Chinese goods to the targeted firms, extending the ripple effects well beyond those directly sanctioned.

The list includes one German entity, two Belgian firms, and four Czech companies – including military industrial manufacturers Omnipol and Excalibur Army, all deeply embedded in supply chains connected to Ukraine.

The prominence of Czech firms reflects a deliberate strategic shift in Prague between 2022 and 2025 – a pivot away from Beijing and toward Taipei that has reshaped the country’s geopolitical role.

This transformation has been multifaceted. Political engagement with Taiwan has intensified, exceeding the limits of the One China principle. Economically, the Czech Republic has inserted itself into semiconductor supply chains linked to Taiwan, seeking to hedge against dependence on Chinese production.

But the most sensitive dimension lies in defense cooperation. Cybersecurity coordination, intelligence exchanges, and the transfer of military equipment have all deepened. Czech-made systems have moved to the island, while Taiwanese components have flowed to Ukraine, often rerouted through intermediaries to avoid scrutiny. This emerging alignment increasingly feeds into the conflict in Ukraine while simultaneously intersecting with tensions around Taiwan.

The Taiwan-EU-Ukraine Axis

Taiwan has expanded its drone manufacturing footprint in the Czech Republic, anchoring joint initiatives aimed at building shared military-industrial capacity. In 2025, more than 70,000 drones were exported to the Czech Republic and over 30,000 to Poland. Taiwanese high-tech components, European integration and manufacturing, and Ukrainian battlefield deployment form a continuous loop. Systems are developed in one region, assembled in another, and tested in active conflict.

What is presented as cooperation or resilience begins to resemble a distributed war economy, stretching across continents while maintaining the appearance of separation.

From Beijing’s perspective, this is a network – one that links Taiwan, the EU, and Ukraine into a shared strategic space aimed at countering both Russia and China.

China’s sanctions, in this light, are less a reaction than a calculated attempt to disrupt this chain at its most exposed nodes.

Within Brussels, this trajectory reflects a deeper shift. Certain policymakers appear increasingly convinced that Europe’s security must be asserted not only in its immediate neighborhood, but across a wider geopolitical spectrum.

Yet the more the EU expands its sanctions and security engagements, the more it risks entangling itself in multiple fronts simultaneously. What began as a response to a regional conflict is now bleeding into the Indo-Pacific, merging distinct crises into a single, volatile continuum.

There is also a growing perception, both within and beyond Europe, that sanctions have become less a tool of last resort and more an instinctive response. This habitual reliance narrows space for diplomacy and fosters a climate in which escalation becomes easier than restraint.

What is unfolding is not simply a sanctions dispute. It is the emergence of a more fragmented and confrontational international (dis)order.

The EU’s expanding measures signal a readiness to project power through economic means far beyond its borders. China’s response increasingly demonstrates that such moves will be met in kind. Each step reinforces the other, feeding a cycle of action and reaction that grows harder to control.

At the center of this dynamic lies the Taiwan-EU-Ukraine triangle – a convergence of technology, industry, and conflict that encapsulates the shifting nature of global competition. It is here, in these interlocking relationships, that the future outlines of geopolitical rivalry are being shaped.

The stakes ahead

For Europe, the path forward is fraught. An ever-expanding sanctions regime risks overextension and unintended consequences. For China, the priority remains clear: to defend its economic and strategic interests against what it views as encroaching pressure.

What is undeniable is that the old boundaries are dissolving. Decisions made in Brussels now echo in Beijing, Taipei, and Kiev alike. Supply chains double as strategic corridors and industrial cooperation blends into military alignment.

The deeper question is whether this trajectory can be sustained without tipping into a broader and more dangerous confrontation. Sanctions, once seen as a controlled instrument, are becoming part of a larger pattern of escalation that is steadily redrawing the map of global politics.

The EU may believe it is shaping events. But in binding together distant theaters and tightening the screws of economic pressure, it may also be setting forces in motion that it cannot contain.

With 65 deaths reported so far, an Ebola outbreak has been confirmed in Democratic Republic of Congo’s Ituri province, the Africa Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) said on Friday. 

According to preliminary results from the National Institute for Biomedical Research (INRB) in Kinshasa, 13 out of 20 tested samples came back positive for Ebola.  

“About 246 suspected cases and 65 deaths have been reported, mainly in the Mongwalu and Rwampara health zones,” the authorities said, adding that four of the fatalities were among laboratory-confirmed patients. 

Health officials are also investigating suspected infections in the city of Bunia, although those cases have not yet been confirmed.  

The Africa CDC said it was coordinating with the governments of the DR Congo, Uganda and South Sudan, as well as international health partners, to strengthen surveillance, preparedness and emergency response measures along border areas. 

Ebola, a highly contagious hemorrhagic fever, is spread through direct contact with infected bodily fluids or tissue. The fatality rate for this disease can reach 90%. Symptoms often include high fever, fatigue, headaches, sore throat, vomiting, diarrhea, skin rash, and internal or external bleeding.  

The outbreak comes just months after the DR Congo declared an end to its previous Ebola flare-up in Kasai Province. According to WHO figures, it resulted in 64 cases – 53 confirmed and 11 deemed probable – and 45 deaths. The outbreak officially declared over in December 2025 in the country, marked the country’s 16th recorded Ebola epidemic since the virus was first identified there in 1976. Kasai had previously experienced outbreaks in 2007 and 2008. 

South African Minister of International Relations and Cooperation Ronald Lamola has said the US cannot exclude Pretoria from the December G20 Summit, noting that the country is a founding member.

Lamola was interviewed while in New Delhi, India, for the Meeting of BRICS Ministers of Foreign Affairs/International Relations, which is being hosted under India’s BRICS chairmanship on 14 and 15 May 2026. The meeting has been convened under the theme, “Building for Resilience, Innovation, Cooperation, and Sustainability (BRICS)”.

When asked how the country is handling its relationship with the President of the US, Donald Trump, the minister admitted that it has been “an unpredictable environment”.

”We deal with it as it comes, and as it goes. We have, up to so far, maintained our communication with the White House, and the various facets of the American society, because the American society is multilayered – Congress, ThinkTanks, academia, business sector, and so forth,” Lamola said.

“We look at it as a multifaceted society that we need to continue to work with, and strengthen the relations of people-to-people.”

He added that the ministry was surprised that the highest number of tourists to South Africa last year came from the US.

”It shows that the strengthening of people-to-people relations is also a very key component of our engagement with the US and also with the cities.”

On the matter of the G20 Summit and the uncertainty surrounding South Africa’s attendance, Lamola said that it is not Trump’s place to dictate whether South Africa can or cannot attend.

”He can’t say that we can no longer be in the G20, because we are a founding member of the G20, and no member of the G20 can decide that this country can no longer be a member of the G20.

“What he has done is not to invite South Africa into the G20 summit that will be hosted by the US, but, we are a member of the G20. So, we really don’t know what that summit will be, which does not have one of its founding members.

”It is important that the members of the G20 will have to discuss and characterise what that is… I don’t know whether you can characterise it as a G20 if South Africa is not there.”

When asked if the development of a BRICS currency was still being discussed, Lamola said: “The talks have been more on the use of local currencies on trade. It is a process that is still ongoing, and we will want to see that being developed, because those who are financial experts say it is cheaper to trade in local currency… So it’s indeed something that BRICS has to continue to develop.”

It was also reported in the media that Iranian authorities have increasingly singled out the United Arab Emirates (UAE) and have warned of stronger strikes against the country if the United States and Israel resume their attacks.

Speaking of how the tension the two between BRICS countries has impacted proceedings, Lamola said: “There are member states of BRICS who are directly impacted by the conflict, as you are aware, the UAE and Iran, but we do think, and see, this as an opportune platform for us to foster that cooperation, to foster that dialogue for peaceful engagement, even on this conflict that affects directly our members. We see it as a huge platform of interactions, of exchange of ideas, and its resolution anchored on the UN Charter.”

Speaking of the SA-India partnership, Lamola said that India is a big global player in terms of technology and agriculture, and it is among South Africa’s biggest trading partners.

”They account for almost a fourth or fifth of our trade. We are India’s number one trader in Africa, so it’s a relationship of goodwill. The relationship between South Africa and India has grown from strength to strength, with South Africa being one of those countries where there’s a huge Indian diaspora in the world,” Lamola said.

”These cultural people-to-people, but also the trade level between the two countries, make this relationship very strategic, and we look forward to continuing with it, both at the strategic level, in terms of research, development, science and technology, and also skills development.

”We are looking forward to continuing to build on this foundation,” he said.

First published by IOL

Russian President Vladimir Putin will make an official visit to China on May 19 and 20, the Kremlin has said.

The Russian president has been invited to the country by his Chinese counterpart, Xi Jinping, it said in a statement on Saturday.

During the trip, Putin and Xi are expected to discuss bilateral relations, ways to further deepen strategic interaction between Moscow and Beijing, as well as exchange views on key international and regional issues, the statement read.

The talks are set to conclude with a joint statement from the two leaders and the signing of various agreements between the Russian and Chinese governments.

Putin will also meet with Chinese Premier Li Qiang to discuss trade and economic relations, according to the Kremlin.

Xi was among the foreign leaders who traveled to Moscow for the May 9, 2025 Victory Day parade marking the 80th anniversary of the Soviet Union’s victory over Nazi Germany in World War II.

Relations between China and Russia have deepened in recent years, with Beijing refusing to join Western sanctions over the Ukraine conflict and the two countries expanding trade, energy and diplomatic ties. Moscow and Beijing have also moved forward with major energy projects, including the proposed Power of Siberia 2 gas pipeline, which would significantly increase Russian gas supplies to China.

Putin is expected to visit China twice in 2026, having also accepted an invitation to attend the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) summit in Shenzhen in November, presidential aide Yury Ushakov said.

A political drama unfolded in the past week in Tamil Nadu, a southern Indian state known for its ancient temple, booming manufacturing, and political duopoly. For six decades, the state has seen power alternate between two powerful regions parties – the Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam (DMK) and the All India Anna Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam (AIADMK).

Last week, however, this era came to end with popular actor-turned-politician Vijay and his newly formed the Tamilaga Vettri Kazhagam (TVK) party winning the Tamil Nadu Legislative Assembly election.

Vijay was sworn in as chief minister of the state on Sunday. The ceremony brought to a close a week of political uncertainty. The TVK won 108 seats in the April election (the results of which were announced on May 5).

Although it was an extraordinary debut, the party was still ten seats short of the majority mark of 118 (the Tamil Nadu legislative assembly has 234 members).

When Vijay called on the governor last week to stake his claim, he could demonstrate the backing of only 113 legislators – the TVK’s own seats plus five won by Indian National Congress party, a key opposition party at the federal level (the Congress severed ties with its traditional partner, the DMK, to support the TVK).

Later, the left parties – the Communist Party of India and Communist Party of India-Marxist, and two other smaller parties, Viduthalai Chiruthaigal Katchi and Indian Union Muslim League – backed Vijay, providing the needed support.

On Wednesday, Vijay passed the confidence motion in the assembly, securing the support of 144 lawmakers – well above the majority mark of 118. The vote took place amid high political drama, with DMK and DMDK legislators walking out of the house.

A power shift thanks to Gen Zs

The election results came as a surprise both to the previously dominant parties and outsiders, giving a setback to the old paradigm that has governed politics in the state for decades. Now-former Chief Minister M. K. Stalin, who leads the DMK, lost his own seat. Political commenters say it is the Gen Z voters who want to see a change in governance.

A veteran with over three decades of experience in films, Vijay is more than just an actor for the state of Tamil Nadu. He performs electrifying dances. Vijay’s entry into politics was awaited. He expressed gratitude towards his voters, especially Gen Z voters, after the results came in.

“We said this election would be a remarkable one that would shake Indian politics, and it has proven to be so in many ways,” Vijay said. 

“Among the many factors, one of the deeper reasons behind this extraordinary election has been the children who guided their families with their sense of conviction,” he added, referring to Gen Z voters.

Vijay said the “TVK has emerged as a major driving force of change.” He called his social media followers “his virtual warriors” for fighting online hate against the party.

Vijay’s promises

Vijay established his fame by playing an underdog hero in films who challenges the system, which eventually prepared him for a career in politics. In 2024, he officially entered politics through the TVK. For a party barely two years old, winning 108 seats was historic.

According to experts, unlike most celebrities who enter politics by joining established parties, Vijay stepped in on his own and presented himself as a third option against the two giants that have dominated Tamil Nadu politics since 1967.

The TVK leader announced four important steps in his party’s Youth Agenda. Under the Education Guarantee Scheme, a loan amounting to 2 million rupees ($21,000) without any guarantee will be provided to those pursuing education from Class 12 onwards until the PhD level. Participants will receive a monthly stipend of 18,000 rupees ($190). Vijay also promised to establish a Tamil Nadu Youth Advisory Council, pitching it as a platform for youth to communicate with the chief minister and government officials.

The contestants chosen by Vijay came from citizens of all 234 constituencies and were considered ‘members of the family’ of the voters rather than professional politicians. He accused the incumbent DMK government of corruption, theft, and targeting journalists.

Why Gen Z believes in Vijay’s party

This election saw the emergence of young people and new voters. For Gen Z, whose lives have been dominated by the politics of the AIADMK’s ‘Two Leaves’ and the DMK’s ‘Rising Sun’, Vijay offered the prospect of breaking the cycle of 60 years.

“Youth everywhere wants change, and that is what happened here,” Rupa Vardarajan, 23, a computer science engineer from Chennai, said.

“We needed a new political wave, a change in our state. Someone who will understand the problems of youth, unemployment, and the drug problem. The problems of educated women. We hope all these things will change now,” she added.

Vijay’s campaign leaned heavily on visual storytelling – short videos, cinematic references, and a personalized, almost influencer‑style connection with followers online. 

“On campuses and in small‑town tea shops, the 2026 election felt like a youth rebellion,” Allen Jospeh, a resident, said. “Tamil Nadu has a large youth population; millions of first‑time and second‑time voters grew up with Vijay’s movies.”

He said the new party became a vehicle for frustration with unemployment, exam leaks, corruption scandals, and a sense that both the DMK and AIADMK had become too disconnected from reality.

Fall of the Dravidian fortress

Tamil Nadu is located in South-East India and ranks second in economic terms in India, with a population of around 77 million, equivalent to that of Germany. For decades, the state has taken pride in upholding Dravidian Identity, a sociopolitical ideology emphasizing social justice, secularism, and regional autonomy.

Since 1967, power has alternated between the DMK and AIADMK, both offshoots of that Dravidian tradition.

The DMK, headed by M. K. Stalin, ruled the state from 2011 to 2016 (in alliance roles) and then returned in 2021. By 2026, it had been in office for five consecutive years when it sought another term. Although the state had numerous welfare schemes, it was hit hard by an unprecedented wave of anti-incumbency. Corruption and ‘family rule’ are some of the factors voters pointed to.

Udhayanidhi Stalin, the former chief minister’s son, won his seat in Chepauk, while M. K. Stalin himself faced a humiliating defeat in his constituency of Kolathur. 

Political pundits say the election was the biggest change in South Indian politics in the last 50 years.

In April 2026, assembly elections were held in four states – Tamil Nadu, Kerala, West Bengal, and Assam, along with the Union Territory of Puducherry, which dramatically altered the political landscape in these regions. The southern states witnessed a clear mandate against the ruling parties, and in West Bengal, the ruling BJP, headed by Prime Minster Narendra Modi, recorded an unprecedented landslide victory with 207 seats. This win came as an even bigger surprise.

‘Gen Z in Tamil Nadu wants dignity in public life’ 

Political scientist and commentator Professor S. Narayan, who is based in Tamil Nadu, argued that in the case of Tamil Nadu, Vijay tapped into “a new moral imagination among young voters.” 

Mukund Padmanabhan, a senior political expert and editor, described the results as a “structural rupture.” 

“The 2026 election is the first time in 50 years that the ‘Dravidian Duopoly’ has been physically challenged not just by a person, but by a new demographic reality. Vijay didn’t just win seats; he won the first-time voter who sees the legacy parties as relics of their parents’ era.”

For now, Tamil Nadu’s Gen Z voters say they have made their choice clear: They are tired of watching the same political movie on repeat. 

“We grew up cheering for him in the dark of the cinema, and now we expect Vijay’s party to deliver in governance,” Saad Shaikh, 26, who works in his family’s leather business in Madurai, said.

The international community must take a more active approach to the plight of displaced Palestinians and the Israeli occupation of their land, Iranian Ambassador to the United Nations Amir-Saeid Iravani said on Friday.

Iravani made the appeal on the 78th anniversary of the Nakba, a term used in the Arab and Muslim world to describe the flight and expulsion of more than 700,000 Palestinians during the 1948 Arab-Israeli war. Today, around six million Palestinians are registered with the UN refugee agency UNRWA, many of them living in refugee camps.

There is an “urgent necessity for international mobilization to confront the root causes of this situation,” Iravani said, calling for resistance to Israeli occupation and “expansionist policies.” Support for Palestine “must not remain limited merely to expressions of sympathy,” he added, arguing that the world must abandon “approaches that have failed to achieve peace or justice.”

The situation has been further exacerbated by Israel’s war in Gaza, with the UN saying that the majority of the enclave’s pre-conflict population of 2.1 million has been displaced.

Officials in Israel have increasingly rejected calls for a two-state solution, arguing that the establishment of a fully independent Palestinian state would threaten their country’s existence.

“There will not be a Palestinian state. It’s very simple: it will not be established,” Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said in November 2025, according to the Times of Israel.

Russia is seeking to expand a pilot Islamic banking program as demand for Sharia-compliant financial products continues to grow, according to the country’s largest lender, Sber.

Islamic banking, also known as partner financing, follows Sharia principles that prohibit interest-based lending and speculative transactions. Instead, it relies on mechanisms such as leasing, installment sales, profit-sharing arrangements, and asset-backed financing. It also restricts financing for sectors such as gambling, alcohol, tobacco, and weapons production. Russia launched the pilot initiative in 2023 in four predominantly Muslim regions, including the Republic of Tatarstan, and later extended it until 2028.

An estimated 20 million Muslims live in Russia, including more than 2 million in Tatarstan.

Speaking at KazanForum, an Islamic-themed conference held in Tatarstan’s capital, Kazan, on Thursday, Sber senior vice president Oleg Ganeev said demand was strongest for everyday banking products, including accounts, payment services, cards, and deposits. Sber has also launched digital sukuk products – Islamic bonds designed to comply with Sharia principles – Ganeev added.

Aksakov said lawmakers and financial institutions had identified “eight priority areas for development” based on standards used by the Bahrain-based Accounting and Auditing Organization for Islamic Financial Institutions (AAOIFI).

Tatarstan Economy Minister Midhat Shagiakhmetov said the republic had been developing Islamic finance for around 15 years and now offers about 35 Sharia-compliant financial products. More than half of all transactions under Russia’s pilot program are currently carried out in the region, he added.

Russian officials have also discussed expanding the pilot program beyond the four participating regions and increasing the use of Islamic finance instruments to attract foreign investment.

The US-mediated truce between Israel and Lebanon has been extended by 45 days, US State Department spokesman Tommy Pigott said on Friday.

Pigott said the sides had agreed to extend the ceasefire reached on April 16 following “highly productive talks.” He added that the Pentagon would host discussions with military delegations on May 29, while the State Department would hold another meeting focused on political matters on June 2-3.

“We hope these discussions will advance lasting peace between the two countries, full recognition of each other’s sovereignty and territorial integrity, and the establishment of genuine security along their shared border,” Pigott said.

The strikes have taken the lives of nearly 3,000 people in Lebanon since March, when Israel resumed operations against the armed group Hezbollah, which had fired rockets at Israel in support of Iran.

Tehran has since listed an end to hostilities in Lebanon as one of its key conditions for a peace agreement with the US and Israel.

Hezbollah, which was not part of the peace talks, has continued mortar, rocket, and drone attacks on Israeli troops stationed in parts of southern Lebanon that West Jerusalem says are needed for a “security zone.” The Israel Defense Forces (IDF) have lost six soldiers since the start of the ceasefire, including a staff sergeant killed on Thursday.

Under the ceasefire agreement, Israel pledged not to carry out offensive operations against targets in Lebanon, while reserving the right to “take all necessary measures in self-defense, at any time, against planned, imminent, or ongoing attacks.”

US President Donald Trump reaffirmed during his recent talks with Chinese President Xi Jinping that he would not change Washington’s policy toward Taiwan, US Ambassador to the United Nations Mike Waltz has said.

Beijing has long opposed US arms sales to the self-governing island and any diplomatic recognition of the government in Taipei. Chinese Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Mao Ning said during Trump’s trip to China on Thursday that “Taiwan independence” and peace in the region were “as irreconcilable as fire and water.”

“At the end of the day, [Trump] made no commitments either way, in line with our longstanding policy of strategic ambiguity,” Waltz told Fox News on Friday. “There is a whole line of thinking that if you basically indicate or tell China that we won’t be there, that it could embolden them as well,” he added.

The US maintains informal ties with Taiwan, having withdrawn recognition in 1979. Although the People’s Republic of China has stressed that it seeks reunification with the island through peaceful means, it has indicated that it could resort to force if the wayward province formally declares independence.

In an interview with Fox News on Friday, Trump said that “nothing has changed” and that he was “not looking to have somebody go independent.”

“And, you know, we’re supposed to travel 9,500 miles to fight a war. I’m not looking for that. I want them to cool down. I want China to cool down,” he added.

China has said it considers all contacts with the “separatist” government in Taiwan to be hostile acts. In 2022, Beijing condemned then-US House Speaker Nancy Pelosi’s visit to the island and launched snap military drills in response.