Latest news for 27 May 2026

CANADA

Want some gas?

Canada has reportedly closed a 20-year LNG supply deal with Germany, due to be announced today (Wednesday). (CBC)

Comment: Call it the latest EU-Canada step to slowly diversify away from the US.

SENEGAL

Look who’s back…

The Senegalese parliament has reinstated Ousmane Sonko as speaker, barely days after President Faye dismissed him as PM amid months of tensions. (France24)

Comment: Faye partly dismissed Sonko for his opposition to a new IMF deal, and yet the instability sparked by his removal might complicate Faye’s efforts to get that deal!

CHINA

Travel curbs for AI leaders.

Beijing has imposed travel curbs on top AI talent from tech firms like Alibaba and Deepseek, meaning they’ll now need permission to travel abroad! (Bloomberg $)

Comment: Similar curbs are already in place for state employees and top scientists, but expanding them to the private sector’s AI researchers, executives and startup founders is both a) an attempt to prevent leaks, poaching, and IP outflow amid US-China rivalry, but also b) a reminder that China’s private sector ain’t always so private.

LEBANON

Israel escalation.

Amid mutual allegations of ceasefire breaches, Israel’s Netanyahu has now ordered his forces to “crush” Hezbollah, with airstrikes and ground operations now expanding across southern Lebanon. Meanwhile, the IDF says its Tuesday strikes in Gaza have killed the latest commander of the Hamas military wing. (Al Monitor)

SINGAPORE

North Korea visit.

Foreign Minister Balakrishnan (of built-myself-an-AI-brain fame) has landed in North Korea for the first such visit to the hermit state since 2018. He’s on a regional tour with stops including China and South Korea. (NK News)

Comment: Singapore is one of very few states maintaining functional DPRK ties, despite being a US ~partner — it even hosted the 2018 Trump-Kim Jong Un summit. We wonder if Balakrishnan’s tour means Trump is now pushing for another summit, or if Balakrishnan is just trying to keep channels open amid heightened tensions.

BOLIVIA

Carrots and sticks.

Mass anti-government protests are continuing amid economic hardship, shrugging off a) newish business-friendly President Paz halving his own salary to mollify anger, and b) the legislature authorising him to deploy troops to the streets. Meanwhile, President Lula in neighbouring Brazil has publicly backed Bolivia’s government and called for calm and dialogue. (Al Jazeera)

Comment: That Lula intervention is intriguing, given he’s traditionally aligned more with Bolivia’s leftist Morales (now hiding from an arrest warrant). It might be a way to appeal to moderates ahead of Brazil’s November elections, but likely reflects Brazil’s interests in Bolivian stability and energy (it relies on piped Bolivian natural gas).

SPAIN

No predictions here.

Spain’s consumer protection agency has temporarily blocked prediction sites Polymarket and Kalshi amid claims they were operating unlicensed. Several others like France and the Netherlands have already restricted or banned these platforms. (Guardian)

Comment: Why now? It’s a response to a) their surge in popularity, and b) recent scandals around government insider-trading — a dilemma we explored here. With Europe seemingly defaulting to treating these sites as betting platforms, we might see a slowdown in mainstream adoption across the continent.