| Trump plans a third extension of the deadline for ByteDance to divest the American operations of TikTok, allowing the Chinese company to keep the popular social-media app running in the US while negotiations proceed. The decision provides another lifeline for TikTok, which US lawmakers have long feared could be used to spy on American citizens and which has emerged as a source of friction between Washington and Beijing. Thailand’s government faces collapse after a leaked phone call unleashed renewed political turmoil, with Prime Minister Paetongtarn Shinawatra facing pressure to resign and street protests as she grapples with the exit of the second-biggest party in her coalition. Bhumjaithai quit the government, citing a loss of trust after the premier appeared to criticize the Thai army’s role in a border dispute during the call with former Cambodian leader Hun Sen.  Paetongtarn Shinawatra at a news conference in Bangkok today. Photographer: Valeria Mongelli/Bloomberg Bolivian President Luis Arce plans to use millions of dollars of overseas loans to tackle crippling fuel shortages and soaring consumer prices before he leaves office in November, he told us in an interview. The South American leader said he’s hopeful the measures will help stabilize an economy that’s grappling with its most serious crisis in decades, ahead of elections in August in which he is backing his party’s candidate, Eduardo del Castillo. Former Argentine President Cristina Fernández de Kirchner started her first full day of house arrest for a corruption conviction wondering what exactly she is authorized to do at her Buenos Aires home for the next six years. “Can I go out to my balcony or not? It sounds like a joke, but no,” she said in a post on X, attaching a letter from her lawyers to the court asking whether she can speak to her supporters gathered outside.  Fernández on her balcony in Buenos Aires last week. Photographer: Luis Robayo/AFP/Getty Images Spain’s most-detailed account yet of the missteps leading to April’s nationwide blackout failed to fully explain why the power grid was so unstable in the first place. The government blamed the grid operator for failing to ensure enough backup generation and plant operators for not fulfilling commitments; it didn't explain what caused voltage surges that the system was unable to cope with, and what could be done, if anything, to prevent that in the future. One of Colombia’s highest courts blocked President Gustavo Petro’s bid to hold a referendum on strengthening labor rights, denying him a potential boost at a time when the government’s popularity is waning. Rwanda and Democratic Republic of Congo will sign a peace agreement next week, according to the US State Department, in a bid to end a decades-long conflict between the African neighbors. New Zealand has paused development funding to the Cook Islands after the tiny South Pacific nation signed agreements with China without the level of consultation expected by the government in Wellington. The US State Department has ordered a review of student-visa applicants’ social-media presence and told them to make their profiles public, tightening measures to restrict foreign citizens’ entry to American campuses over national-security concerns. President Vladimir Putin revealed that his grandchild speaks fluent Chinese because her nanny is a Beijinger and said that Russians in general are showing greater interest in learning the language, highlighting deepening ties between the two nations. | 
