World News 5-5: Oil Prices Surge to $115/barrel; Suspect Shot Near White House
Translated from Vietnamese, summarized and contextualized by DistantNews.
TLDR
- President Trump criticized polls on the Iran war as "fake," questioning their methodology and suggesting they don't reflect public opinion accurately.
- Russia and Ukraine have offered conflicting proposals for a ceasefire, with Russia announcing a two-day halt on May 8-9 for WWII commemorations and Ukraine proposing an earlier, humanitarian-focused ceasefire.
- US national debt has surpassed its GDP, reaching $31.270 trillion against a GDP of $31.220 trillion, raising concerns about the nation's fiscal outlook.
In a series of statements that have stirred considerable debate, President Trump has vehemently dismissed recent polls suggesting a lack of public support for the ongoing conflict with Iran. He characterized these surveys as "fake" and "biased," arguing they do not accurately capture the sentiment of the American people. While acknowledging his personal dislike for war, Trump asserted that the U.S. possesses superior military capabilities. He proposed alternative polling questions, focusing on whether Americans would accept Iran possessing nuclear weapons, rather than their support for the war itself. Trump also defended the duration of the conflict, stating that a few weeks is not unusual compared to historical wars, brushing aside criticisms regarding the pace of conflict resolution.
They do surveys about the war with Iran and say only 32% support. I don't like that and I don't like war at all, but we are better equipped and have the strongest military in the world.
Meanwhile, the conflict between Russia and Ukraine continues to be marked by diverging ceasefire proposals. President Vladimir Putin announced a two-day cessation of hostilities on May 8 and 9 to commemorate Victory Day, a significant World War II anniversary. However, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky proposed a separate ceasefire, set to begin earlier at midnight on May 5, emphasizing humanitarian concerns. Russia's Ministry of Defense expects Kyiv to adhere to its timeline and warned of "large-scale missile retaliation" against central Ukraine if the commemorations are disrupted, urging civilians and diplomats to evacuate cities. Zelensky, however, deemed Russia's proposal "not serious" and stated Ukraine would "act accordingly," prioritizing human lives over any celebrations.
The polls are totally fake.
On the economic front, the United States has crossed a significant fiscal threshold: its national debt has now exceeded its Gross Domestic Product (GDP). As of the end of March 2026, the national debt stood at $31.270 trillion, while the GDP was recorded at $31.220 trillion. This marks the first time the national debt has surpassed GDP since the early days of the COVID-19 pandemic, when economic activity plummeted. While the ratio itself is a concern, analysts point to the underlying trends, future borrowing prospects, and projections for growth and borrowing costs as particularly worrying indicators of the U.S. fiscal outlook, which may not be fully reflected in daily political discourse.
Moscow expects Kiev to comply with the ceasefire time set by Russia, and will ensure the security of commemorative events.
DistantNews Editorial
Originally published by Tuแปi Trแบป in Vietnamese. Translated, summarized, and contextualized by our editorial team with added local perspective. Read our editorial standards.
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