“The last time China’s top leader, Xi Jinping, traveled to North Korea, that country’s dictator, Kim Jong-un, was reeling from sanctions and failed nuclear talks with the United States,” the New York Times reports. 

“Now, nearly seven years later, as Mr. Xi returns to North Korea on Monday, he will meet with a leader who is newly emboldened by an alliance with Russia that has helped his economy break out of isolation.”

“Mr. Xi is expected to use the two-day summit with Mr. Kim to project a united front between allies against the West. But analysts say China is likely also keen to assert its influence over a neighbor that has leaned toward Russia.”

Bloomberg: “President Donald Trump’s eldest son warned against investing in China during an event for investors on Thursday in Zurich, even as his father’s administration has pushed forward on plans to improve commercial ties between the two countries.”

Axios: “Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s recent spat with President Trump over Lebanon underscored how his military objectives, and possibly his political survival, are dependent on a U.S. president who doesn’t share his appetite for escalation.”

“Trump and Netanyahu have coordinated very closely on Iran and speak almost daily. But officials on both sides have been cognizant that there could be a point in time when the allies’ interests and objectives diverge. Some in Netanyahu’s camp worry that time is now.”

Paul Krugman: “A funny thing happened to Trump’s attempt to hand Ukraine over to his comrade in thuggery: the war has turned in Ukraine’s favor. The fighting remains a gruesome slugfest, but Ukraine’s superior flexibility and capacity for innovation have gradually given it the upper hand in the drone warfare that increasingly shapes combat. In fact, Ukraine is so proficient at drone warfare that the United Arab Emirates, Qatar and Saudi Arabia — which are facing drone attacks as a consequence of Trump’s disastrous Iran war — have signed agreements to draw on Ukrainian technology and expertise.”

“Zelensky, it turns out, does have quite a few cards, while Trump has far fewer cards than he imagined.”

Bloomberg: “Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky proposed peace talks to Russian leader Vladimir Putin in an open letter on Thursday.”

“The appeal came as officials from Germany, France and the UK have been discussing the possibility of holding talks involving Russia and Ukraine.”

Bloomberg: “The US slapped sanctions on Cuban President Miguel Díaz-Canel and members of his family, further ratcheting up pressure on the communist-run Caribbean island.”

“Cuba’s armed forces and its internal surveillance network, known as the Committees for the Defense of the Revolution, and a prominent mining operation were also added to the US Treasury’s blacklist subject to financial sanctions.”