Afghan President Ashraf Ghani and his political rival Abdullah Abdullah signed a power-sharing agreement (Al Jazeera), a move that could pave the way for peace talks with the Taliban.
​
Both men claimed victory in the country’s 2019 election and held separate inauguration ceremonies in March. Under the new deal (WaPo), Ghani will remain president but Abdullah will appoint half the cabinet ministers. Abdullah will also lead peace talks with the Taliban as chairman of the High Council for National Reconciliation. Intra-Afghan talks were jeopardized last week when Ghani ordered troops to resume operations against the militant group following a brutal attack at a maternity hospital.

Fifteen pro-democracy lawmakers were booted from a meeting (SCMP) after clashing with security guards during the selection of a leader of an influential committee that examines bills and determines when votes are held. A pro-establishment legislator was reelected to the post.
​
Myanmar: Police seized a record amount of liquid fentanyl (Reuters), marking the first time the drug was found in the Golden Triangle, where the borders of Laos, Myanmar, and Thailand meet. Fentanyl is one of the drugs contributing to the U.S. opioid epidemic.

The number of people who have tested positive for the coronavirus jumped by nearly five thousand (Press Trust of India) in twenty-four hours, bringing the country’s total cases to more than ninety thousand, India’s health ministry said. More than thirty thousand people have recovered from the virus, while nearly three thousand have died.

Israel installed a new unity government (Haaretz), ending a political logjam that lasted longer than a year and included three elections. Benjamin Netanyahu will stay on as prime minister and be succeeded by his former rival, Benny Gantz, in eighteen months.

CFR’s Philip H. Gordon explains the unusual coalition.
​
Iran: The country’s foreign minister warned the United States (AFP) against sending ships to block Iranian oil shipments to Venezuela, saying that such a move would be an act of “piracy” and that the United States would be responsible for any “consequences.”

Despite fears about the coronavirus pandemic, the country is pushing ahead with an election (AP) on Wednesday that will bring an end to President Pierre Nkurunziza’s fifteen-year rule. The transition could become the country’s first peaceful change in leadership since its 1962 independence.
​
Benin: The country held local elections (Al Jazeera) on Sunday, though opposition parties were again left off the ballot.

Hungary’s government expects the controversial emergency powers it was granted in response to the coronavirus pandemic to end by early June (Reuters), Prime Minister Viktor Orban’s chief of staff said.
​
France/Germany: French President Emmanuel Macron and German Chancellor Angela Merkel are expected to announce a “Franco-German initiative” (FT) today to deal with coronavirus outbreaks.

Citing the pandemic, Mexico City halted testing (WSJ) of solar and wind plants in a move some say is designed to favor the state-owned electric utility. More than forty projects worth over $6 billion are affected by the decision.

Argentina: The government is weighing counteroffers from bondholders (Buenos Aires Times) as it seeks to restructure $65 billion worth of debt. If no deal is reached or payment is not made by Friday, the country will be in default.
​
CFR’s The World Next Week podcast discusses Argentina’s debt deadline.

The Donald J. Trump administration and members of Congress are discussing proposals, including tax breaks and subsidies, that would encourage U.S. companies to shift their supply chains out of China (Reuters).

China pledged $2 billion to fight coronavirus (AP) at a meeting of the World Health Organization (WHO) on Monday, while the European Union and other countries called for an independent evaluation of the WHO’s handling of the pandemic.