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US strengthens Kenya ties

US President Joe Biden named Kenya a major non-NATO ally, a move that comes in response to growing Russian influence in Africa. The designation — the first for a sub-Saharan African country — will allow Nairobi to obtain more sophisticated weapons and intelligence from the US. Alongside shoring up defense ties, Kenyan President William Ruto also wooed American investment during his state visit to Washington: Everstrong, an infrastructure asset manager, agreed to build a $3.6 billion highway connecting Nairobi to Mombasa, the biggest port in eastern Africa, while Microsoft said it would invest $1 billion in a new data center in the country.

Europe worried by Trump return

A potential second Donald Trump term is causing European leaders “stress and anxiety,” Kosovo’s prime minister told Semafor in an interview. Speaking in London, Albin Kurti voiced concern over “unprecedented” polarization in the US, and said that the continent worried most about “how a certain urgency can hijack the entire agenda,” referring to Trump’s proclivity for unexpected swings in policy — a trait the former president sees as a strength. Kurti’s remarks outline in public what many politicians have uttered mostly in private: That a second Trump presidency poses a particular risk to Europe, which is heavily dependent on the US for security and trade, and saw both threatened during his first term.

Louisiana curbs abortion-pill access

Lawmakers in the US state of Louisiana passed legislation making the possession of abortion pills without a prescription punishable by up to 10 years in prison. The state’s governor is expected to sign the bill, which would require doctors to get a special license to prescribe abortion drugs and catalog all prescriptions. A state senator introduced the bill after his pregnant sister’s drink was spiked with abortion pills by her husband; the bill originally proposed creating a crime of administering abortion pills without consent. But its broadened scope has triggered a backlash from doctors and abortion campaigners, and is the latest salvo in a battle across the US over women’s reproductive rights.

China aims to ‘seize power’

China focused the final day of its security drills around Taiwan on its ability to “seize power.” Beijing has stepped up its military intimidation of the self-ruling island — which the mainland views as a breakaway province — since the inauguration this month of Taiwan’s new president, whom China describes as a separatist. According to a military expert cited by Chinese state broadcaster CCTV, the drills aim to choke off Taiwan’s ability to export goods or import fuel, and “once besieged and blockaded, it is easy to cause economic collapse and turn it into a dead island.” The exercises also appear to be “a prelude to more and bigger military drills to come,” one expert told Singapore’s Straits Times.

Introducing Mixed Signals, a new podcast from Semafor Media presented by Think with Google. Co-hosted by Semafor’s own Ben Smith, and renowned podcaster and journalist Nayeema Raza, every Friday, Mixed Signals pulls back the curtain on the week’s key stories around media, revealing how money, access, culture, and politics shape everything you read, watch, and hear.

Whether you’re a media insider or simply curious about what drives today’s headlines, Mixed Signals is the perfect addition to your media diet. Listen wherever you get your podcasts.

Space war plans intensify

Both the US and Russia apparently boosted their space militarization efforts. A SpaceX rocket launched on Wednesday carrying US intelligence spy satellites, the first batch of a constellation of hundreds which will be launched over the next four years. A Russian space launch last week, meanwhile, likely contained a space weapon, US officials said: The new military satellite, codenamed Kosmos 2576, is believed to be capable of attacking and destroying other satellites in low-Earth orbit, and its course will occasionally bring it within a few hundred miles of USA 314, a classified American satellite thought to carry a powerful ground-facing telescope used for reconnaissance.

ICJ ruling on Israel due

The International Court of Justice is expected to issue a new ruling on Israel’s war in Gaza, which Israeli officials reportedly worry could include an order to stop its operations entirely. Though the ICJ cannot enforce its decisions, such a pronouncement would deepen Israel’s isolation: The country has been widely criticized for its conduct of the war, and even allies such as Germany have pledged to comply with a separate potential International Criminal Court warrant against the Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu. Still, global opprobrium could yet “strengthen an embattled Netanyahu” who “has long derided the supposed anti-Israel bent of agencies within the United Nations and cast Israel as a victim of global antisemitism,” The Washington Post noted.

Argentina peso plunges

The black market rate for Argentina’s peso fell to a record low. Meanwhile, new data showed that an economic activity index fell for the fifth straight month in March after dropping more than 8% year-on-year. The string of negative figures is unlikely to sway President Javier Milei, who had asked Argentines for patience, promising the economy would follow a V pattern: A steep drop followed by an equally sharp rise. “I said that the road would be tough, but that this time it would be worth it,” Milei said. However, frustration is growing in Argentina, where poverty rates have soared to encompass almost 60% of the population. “It’s easy to have patience when you have enough to eat,” a Buenos Aires street vendor told Time.

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Changes for US college sports

US college basketball players could soon share in the sport’s TV revenue. US college sports are big business: The National Collegiate Athletics Association signed a $1 billion deal with ESPN in January. But none of the money goes to the players, who are not considered employees and receive no pay, though since 2021 they have been able to profit from individual endorsement deals. The NCAA, which has sought to maintain the amateur status of college sports for decades, is facing a series of legal challenges. Its board of governors approved a $2.8 billion settlement in three major antitrust lawsuits, which would allow revenue-sharing with athletes.

Happy birthday, Our World in Data

The website Our World in Data turned 10 years old. Its founder Max Roser registered the domain on May 23, 2014, as a tool for academics and journalists, but it has since become a vital global resource: It is regularly cited by academic journals and world media. During the pandemic, it influenced governments. “You cannot understand the lives of 8 billion people through short-term looks at single events,” its deputy editor Hannah Ritchie wrote last month. “To do that, you need data.” Many of the world’s biggest problems and successes are slow and not newsworthy, and news coverage is scattered and biased: “It’s only through statistics that you can begin to grapple with the complexities of the world.”

Farewell to Doge

Kabosu, the Shiba Inu dog made famous by “doge” memes, died at the age of 18. Her owner, from Sakura, Japan, said she “crossed the rainbow bridge” on May 24, after a battle with leukemia and liver disease and also, presumably, just being 18 years old and a dog. She embodied much of the modern internet: In 2010 her photo, labeled “Doge,” went viral, and inspired Comic Sans memes with broken English saying things like, “so frost, much cold,” and she later became the inspiration for the first meme cryptocoin, Dogecoin. With Grumpy Cat now five years dead, the meme animals of the early social media era are disappearing fast: Only Nyan Cat lives on.

• The Swiss Parliament examines the country’s plan to host the 2030 or 2034 Winter Olympic and Paralympic Games.
• Ecuadorian President Daniel Noboa will address lawmakers in the National Assembly about his efforts to improve security since taking office in November.
• The annual Vivid Sydney light festival begins, illuminating landmarks across the harbor city.

Each week, we’ll tell you what a great independent bookstore suggests you read.

The staff at Manila’s Fully Booked recently published a list of their favorite books to read on a plane, and staffer Nea recommended Happy Place by Emily Henry. “It explores the discovery of new adventures, the journey back to our true selves, and reflections on what defines a happy place,” she wrote. “Themes of friendship, family, and love are stamped throughout its pages.” Buy it from Fully Booked or your local bookstore.

An artificial intelligence chatbot called DAN — short for Do Anything Now — is becoming increasingly popular in China. Users are posting their conversations with the ChatGPT jailbreak on social media platforms such as Xiaohongshu, drawing millions of views. They are attracted by its “unfiltered, often R-rated” replies, reported Sixth Tone, noting that some fans have even described it as “the ideal virtual romantic partner, subverting the predictable traits of a typical AI bot with its funnier, more flirtatious, and lively responses.” DAN has been circulating since December 2022 to circumvent the guardrails of ChatGPT, which is itself officially blocked in China.

• South Africa’s Afrigen targets local diseases with mRNA vaccines.
• Norway gets sued over a deep-sea mining plan.
• Donald Trump takes his MAGA pitch to the South Bronx.