DRAFT

May 21, 2026
U.S. Indicts Raul Castro over Dissident Aircraft Downing

Trump administration on May 20, 2026 indicted Former Cuban President Raul Castro in the 1996 downing of two planes flown by a Miami-based exile group, Brothers to the Rescue. Raul Castro was the defense minister when Cuban MiG-29 fighter jets launched missile strikes on two Cessna planes north of Havana, outside the Cuban airspace, killing all four occupants of the two small planes. The charges are related to destroying the planes and killing their four occupants on February 24, 1996. 

Cuban President Miguel Diaz-Canel rebutted the indictment on an X post, defending the downing as "legitimate self-defense".

ASIA III

CHINA

Days after Trump's Visit, Putin Scores Big Victory with His Own Larger-than-life China Visit

Days after President Donald Trump's much trumpeted visit to China which turned out to be the sub-optimal in outcome, Russian President Vladimir Putin visited China. The Associated Press on May 20, 2026 reported that Chinese President Xi Jinping and Russian President Vladimir Putin had overseen at least 40 trade and commercial agreements. Xi called the countries' ties having reached the highest level. According to Xinhua news agency, the bilateral trade stood at $228 billion in 2025. The Russian oil exports to China climbed by 35% in the first quarter of 2026. 

TAIWAN

Trump Yet to Make a Decision on Taiwan Aid Package

A day after hearing a stern message from his Chinese counterpart, Xi Jinping, U.S. President Donald Trump on the penultimate day, May 15, 2026, of his three-day [May 13-15, 2026] China trip said that he had yet to make up his mind whether to go ahead with the $11.5 billion weapons package that the U.S. government had announced with much fanfare on December 18, 2025. 

However, Trump administration officials are not talking in unison as far as Taiwan vis-a-vis China policy is concerned as the administration's top diplomat, Marco Rubio, has told the NBC News that U.S. policy remains unchanged and it will be a mistake for Beijing to forcibly take over Taiwan. 

ISRAEL II

Netanyahu Reported to Have Secretly Visited UAE in the Midst of War
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's office on May 13, 2026 acknowledged that the prime minister had secretly visited UAE and met with President Sheikh Mohmad bin Zayed Al Nahyan in the midst of the Israeli-U.S. war with Iran. The revelation by the PMO came a day after U.S. Ambassador to Israel Mike Huckabee said that Israel had offered Iron Dome defense technology and personnel to UAE to defend against incoming Iranian missiles and drones. 

Israel Kills the Last of Surviving Hamas Architects of Oct 7 Attack

Israel carried out airstrikes to kill Izz al-Din al-Haddad, commander of Hamas' military wing, one of the last surviving members of the leadership structure that had planned, organized and executed the October 7, 2023, audacious attack on Israel. Hamas on May 16, 2026 confirmed al-Haddad's death. It added that the May 15, 2026, Israeli attack killed, in addition to Izz al-Din al-Haddad, the wife and daughter of the Qassam Brigades' commander. 

Emerging MOU Troubling, Israeli Opposition Leader Says

Israeli opposition leader Yair Lapid on May 25, 2026 has called the emerging Memorandum Of Understanding, or MOU, "disturbing" as the potential U.S. deal with Iran doesn't enhance several Israeli strategic objectives. Lapid accused Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu of losing out both credibility and leverage with Trump administration. Lapid said that the waning influence of Bibi was so stark that his far-right government couldn't even muster courage to protest what Trump said last week that "Netanyahu will do whatever I ask him to do". Lapid, a prime minister for a brief stint in 2022, reiterated that "Israel is a sovereign state, we are not a vassal state". 

In the run-up to the October 2026 parliamentary election, Yair Lapid, one of the few Israeli public figures who supports independent Palestinian state, has merged his "Yesh Atid" party with Naftali Bennett's political party. 

FORMER SOVIET STATES--PART II

 
UKRAINE

Trump Announces Three-day Truce Around Victory Day Weekend

President Donald Trump on May 8, 2026 bragged about how he had brought Ukraine and Russia to agree to a three-day [May 9-11, 2026] truce that would herald in "beginning of the end" of the war. The U.S. president added that in addition to a three-day ceasefire, there would be exchange of 1,000 prisoners of war. Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy and Kremlin Foreign Affairs Adviser Yuri Ushakov confirmed the agreement. 

Meanwhile, in a derogatory manner, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy on May 8, 2026 issued a decree, giving permission to the Kremlin to hold annual "Victory Day" parade at the Red Square and assuring that there won't be any attack on the Red Square during the most celebrated Russian secular holiday. Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov shrugged off Zelenskyy's proclamation, calling it a silly joke.

Russia Pummels 20 Regions of Ukraine with Hundreds of Drones

After a tenuous, three-day ceasefire [May 9-11, 2026] barely held with allegations and complaints of violations by both sides, Russia was alleged to have launched the largest barrage of daytime attacks on May 13, 2026, targeting 20 regions with more than 800 drones. At least six people were killed.

Russia's Largest Barrage Kills at least Two Dozens

Russia extended the May 13, 2026, streak of day attacks with one of the largest barrage of missile strikes on May 14, 2026 that had taken a heavy toll on Kyiv, flattening a nine-story residential apartment complex and destroying other structures. At least 24 people were reported killed. On May 15, 2026, President Volodymyr Zelenskyy led a shocked nation in mourning over the loss of so many lives. 

Belarus Opposition Leader Visits a Day After Russia's Biggest Spree of Missile Attacks

Russia on May 24, 2026 launched this year's biggest barrage of missile attacks on Kyiv and other Ukrainian cities that had killed at least two and injured more than 91. The largest barrage of missile strikes of the year came after the May 22, 2026, deadly Ukrainian drone attack on a dormitory at Starobilsk in the Russia-occupied Luhansk. Ukraine claimed that the attack targeted Russian military assets. The May 22, 2026, drone strike on the Luhansk dorm killed 21 and injured an additional 42 people. Russian Defense Ministry called the May 22, 2026, dorm attack as the "final straw". In response, Russia on May 24, 2026 launched largest missile attack on Ukraine, including the usage of hypersonic Oreshnik ballistic missile. 

On May 25, 2026, exiled Belarusian opposition leader Sviatlana Tsikhanouskaya visited Kyiv as the emergency crewmembers were cleaning up the capital a day after Russia had launched the largest barrage of missile strikes of the year. The much touted visit came a day after May 24, 2026, phone call between French President Emmanuel Macron and Belarusian President Alexander Lukashenko, their first such talks since the Russian invasion of Ukraine on February 24, 2022. A terse statement was issued afterward by Belarusian president's office, clarifying that the call took place at the behest of French president and the discussion centered around the regional issues. 

EUROPE II

 
UNITED KINGDOM

ENGLAND

Starmer Refuses to Resign after Heavy Losses in Local Polls

After significant losses in the May 7, 2026, local polls in which anti-immigrant U.K. Reform Party made inroads, British Prime Minister Keir Starmer said on May 8, 2026 that he won't resign, instead trying to pursue policies to help people. 

SCOTLAND

Ex-husband of Former Scottish Premier Pleads Guilty to Theft

One time they were Scotland's power couple. It's the story of Former Scottish Prime Minister Nicola Sturgeon and her husband Peter Murrell, 61. Scottish National Party at one point of time became synonymous with the rising profile of the First Couple. After more than five years of investigation, Murrell on May 25, 2026 pleaded guilty to theft of 400,000 pounds to fund lavish lifestyle. Nicola Sturgeon said that she had been unaware of the embezzlement. 

U.S. STATES AND NATION: Political Reports and News--PART II

 NATION

Gunman Killed by Secret Service

In the third incident of threat to the president in the last one month, a gunman on May 23, 2026 opened fire at a security checkpoint near the White House, leading to Secret Service personnel returning fire that killed the gunman, later identified as 21-year-old Nasire Best of Dundalk, Maryland. A bystander was seriously injured. 

On April 25, 2026, a California man, Cole Thomas Allen, charged into a Washington hotel during the White House Correspondents' Dinner event and Secret Service shot and injured a man who attacked them near Washington Monument earlier in May 2026. 

********************************* STUDENT LOANS ********************************

States Sue Trump Admin's New Student Loan Cap Rules

On April 30, 2026, Trump administration's Department of Education issued rules as called for by the provisions of One Big Beautiful Bill of July 2025, capping loans at $50,000 per year and total of $200,000 for professional degrees in law and medical schools and $20,500 and $100,000, respectively for the other programs. 

Democratic states--led by 23 Attorneys-General and Governors Josh Shapiro of Pennsylvania and Andy Beshear of Kentucky--Plus District of Columbia filed a lawsuit on May 19, 2026, arguing that the new rules were unconstitutional as they discriminated against medical technicians, nurses and other medical workers who were licensed professionals like doctors. 

********************************* STUDENT LOANS ********************************

TEXAS

*********** TEN COMMANDMENT DISPLAY IN THE CLASSROOMS (SB10) ************

Families File Lawsuit over The Decalogue Display in the Classroom

15 multifaith families filed lawsuit against 14 school districts, including many in North Texas, over the display of the Ten Commandments in classrooms, The Dallas Morning News reported in its September 23, 2025, edition.  

The lawsuit comes on the heels of a similar suit that had led to a federal judge issuing verdict in August 2025 that the display of the Ten Commandments, required by the Senate Bill 10 passed in this year's legislative session, did expressly show favoritism in favor of Christianity and did have all the appearance of "coercion" to the non-Christian students. 

The Decalogue Setback to Lone Star State, Paxton Sues a Pair of ISDs for not Following SB10

A federal judge on November 18, 2025 temporarily blocked the public display of Ten Commandments in the Texas classrooms as mandated by the Senate Bill 10. U.S. District Judge Orlando Garcia of the Western District of Texas in San Antonio has ruled that the plaintiffs are likely to prevail on the ground of the First Amendment's Establishment Clause, which prohibits the state from establishing a religion and ensures separation between the state and the church. 

In a separate, but related, ruling in August 2025, U.S. District Judge Fred Biery of the Western District of Texas in San Antonio temporarily prohibited 11 school districts, including Plano Independent School District, from displaying the Ten Commandments in classrooms. 

The plaintiffs in the November 18, 2025, case include 14 school districts, among them many are North Texas school districts such as Fort Worth, Arlington, McKinney, Frisco, Azle, Northwest, Rockwall, Lovejoy and Mansfield. 

On the same day as U.S. District Judge Orlando Garcia issued TRO [temporary restraint order] relief against display of the Ten Commandments in the classrooms of 14 ISDs, Attorney-General Ken Paxton chose to sue Leander ISD and Round Rock ISD for flouting the Senate Bill 10, days after he took the Galveston ISD to the court early this month for the same reason. 

Appeals Court Rules in Favor of State's Ten Commandment Display Law

Nation's most conservative appeals court, Fifth U.S. Court of Appeals, on April 21, 2026 in a split opinion overturned the lower court ruling on Texas law requiring Ten Commandment display in each public-school classroom. Judge Stuart Kyle Duncan upheld the state law, adding that the law "does not transform the poster into a summon to prayer". 

Paxton Asks Proof of Classroom Display of Ten Commandment from 29 ISDs

Texas Attorney-General Ken Paxton wrote a letter on May 7, 2026, asking proof from 29 school districts, including three from North Texas, that they were complying with the Senate Bill 10 and Senate Bill 11. Governor Gregg Abbott signed the bills passed in 2025 in the preceding legislative session. 

Senate Bill 10 calls for displaying copies of donated Ten Commandment in classrooms, while the Senate Bill 11 requires school boards to hold votes on, not necessarily to approve for, accommodating time for students for  prayer or reading religious texts. Three North Texas school districts are Dallas, Fort Worth and Plano. Paxton threatened to bring lawsuits if satisfactory responses were not sent by the ISDs in due time. Paxton's flurry of lawsuits and investigations increases in the run-up to the May 26, 2026, Senate primary runoff against seating Senator John Cornyn. 

*********** TEN COMMANDMENT DISPLAY IN THE CLASSROOMS (SB10) ************