MOSCOW (AFP) – Chinese President Xi Jinping will visit Russia on May 7-10 and join his Russian counterpart Vladimir Putin at commemorations of the Allied victory against Nazi Germany, the Kremlin said on Sunday. The visit coincides with heightened tensions between Beijing and Washington over swinging U.S. trade tariffs and Putin’s order for a three-day truce in Ukraine, to coincide with Russia’s World War II Victory Day on May 9. Moscow and Beijing declared a “no limits partnership” weeks before Putin announced his Ukraine offensive in February 2022, and the two countries have since expanded their trade and military ties in an alliance that has worried the West. The Russian president’s office said Xi would hold bilateral talks with Putin on “developing partnerships and strategic ties” and on “issues on the international and regional agenda”.

 

***

BUCHAREST (Dispatches) – Romanians voted on Sunday in the first round of a presidential election that could propel hard-right eurosceptic George Simion to power in a ballot that will test the rise of nationalism in the European Union. Simion, 38, opposes military aid to neighboring Ukraine, is critical of the EU leadership and says he is aligned with the U.S. president’s Make America Great Again movement. Five months after a first attempt to hold the election was cancelled after the first round because of alleged Russian interference in favor of far-right frontrunner Calin Georgescu, since banned from standing again, his heir apparent Simion leads opinion polls, riding a wave of popular anger. About 1.98 million Romanians, or 11% of registered voters, had cast ballots by 0710 GMT, data showed. Voting was expected to end at 9 p.m. (1800 GMT) with exit polls to follow immediately and preliminary results expected later in the evening. 

 

***

SEOUL (Reuters) – North Korean leader Kim Jong Un has inspected an “important” tank factory and touted “great progress in the core technology of Korean-style tanks,” state media KCNA said on Sunday. He said producing cutting-edge tanks and armored vehicles is key to modernizing the army and reaching the ruling party’s plan for “the second revolution in armored force.” Kim’s visit comes amid a broader push to modernize North Korea’s conventional armed forces in addition to its nuclear and missile arsenals. The North Korean leader recently attended the launch of a new naval destroyer and tests of new drones, among other weapons. South Korean and U.S. officials have said they suspect the North is receiving some technical and military help from Russia in return for sending ammunition, missiles, and troops for the war in Ukraine, but no details have been confirmed.

 

***

MANILA (AP) – A vehicle crashed into an entrance at Manila’s airport on Sunday morning, leaving two people dead including a young girl, officials said. The other victim was an adult male, the humanitarian group said in a statement. Three other people were injured in the incident and were being treated in a hospital, Hizon said. The driver of the vehicle was in police custody, according to the airport’s operator, New NAIA Infra Co. Dozens of emergency personnel could be seen at Ninoy Aquino International Airport surrounding a black SUV that had rammed into a wall by an entrance. The vehicle was later removed from the site. The airport operator said it is coordinating with the authorities to investigate the incident.

 

***

WASHINGTON (Dispatches) – United States President Donald Trump has faced backlash, including from Catholics, after he posted an artificial intelligence-generated photo showing himself as the pope days in advance of a conclave to elect the next pontiff. Trump, who is not a Catholic and does not attend church regularly, posted the image on his Truth Social platform, less than a week after attending the funeral of Pope Francis, who died last month at the age of 88. The White House then reposted it on its official X account. The image shows an unsmiling Trump seated in an ornate chair, dressed in white papal vestments and headdress, with his right forefinger raised. It came after Trump joked to reporters this week that he would like to be the next pope, just days before cardinals are due to start the conclave to elect the successor of Pope Francis.

 

***

JOHANNESBURG (AFP) – A night-time collision between a packed minibus taxi and a pick-up truck has killed 15 people in rural South Africa, a transport official said on Sunday. Five people were in hospital with serious injuries after the crash at around midnight on Saturday to Sunday near the Eastern Cape town of Maqoma, about 1,000 kilometers (620 miles) south of Johannesburg, provincial transport spokesman Unathi Binqose official told broadcaster Newzroom Afrika. The drivers of both vehicles were among the dead and an inquest would be opened to determine what happened, Binqose said. The victims included 13 passengers in the minibus, which was reportedly traveling from the town of Qonce to Cape Town, a journey of nearly 1,000 kilometers. South Africa has a sophisticated and busy road network. It also has a high rate of road deaths, blamed mostly on speeding, reckless driving and unroadworthy vehicles. Road accidents claimed more than 11,800 lives in 2023, with pedestrians making up around 45 percent of the victims, according to the latest data from the Road Traffic Management Corporation.