Xi greets Putin in Beijing - days after Trump's China visit

In a striking geopolitical moment, Russian President Vladimir Putin received a high-profile welcome in Beijing just days after Donald Trump's state visit, underscoring China's growing centrality in global diplomacy. While Trump's arrival was framed as a diplomatic breakthrough, Putin's visit highlighted a deeper, more asymmetrical alliance: Russia, isolated by Western sanctions after its invasion of Ukraine, now relies heavily on China for economic survival, with over a quarter of its exports flowing to Beijing. Despite the warm rhetoric of 'no limits' partnership, the relationship is clearly hierarchical, with Xi Jinping as the dominant figure. Meanwhile, in the US, Trump's decisive victory in Kentucky's congressional primary confirms his iron grip on the Republican Party, even over long-standing critics, revealing a party increasingly defined by loyalty over principle. On the health front, a new Ebola outbreak in the Democratic Republic of the Congo has sparked alarm, with experts warning that weakened US global health infrastructure—due to staff cuts at the CDC and withdrawal from WHO—has left the world dangerously unprepared. In sports, Arsenal clinched their first Premier League title in 22 years, ending years of near-misses and fulfilling manager Mikel Arteta’s long-term 'trust the process' vision.