On May 31, 2026, the June Fourth Memorial in El Monte, California, was illegally broken into. Walls and exhibits were vandalized with spray paint, and the surveillance system was tampered with. The memorial said this was transnational repression.
Elderly officials of the Chinese Communist Party pushed for Guan Zhiou to bypass Xi Jinping and directly assume the post of Hubei Provincial Party Secretary, taking charge of financial funds related to the Three Gorges Project.
The Standing Committee of the Hainan Provincial People's Congress issued an announcement removing Cai Chaohui from his posts as Vice Governor and Director of the Public Security Bureau due to a job reassignment.
Eileen Wang, former mayor of Arcadia, Los Angeles, USA, was indicted by the federal government and pleaded guilty to acting as an unregistered illegal agent of the Chinese government within the United States.
In the early hours of May 28, 2026, a serious traffic accident occurred on the Henan Nanyang section of the G40 Shanghai–Xi'an Expressway, when a bus licensed to carry 9 passengers but carrying 16 rear-ended a semi-trailer truck, killing 13 and injuring 3. The Ministry of Public Security dispatched a task force to guide the investigation.
Wang Xiaohong has not made a public appearance for days following his meeting with the Prosecutor General of Russia. The Central Inspection Group has moved into the Ministry of Public Security, and Wang is cooperating with the special investigation team led by Liu Jinguo of the CCDI.
On May 27, 2026, Nepal and the Chinese side held talks in Kathmandu to discuss cooperation on flood, weather, and glacial disaster monitoring; after the meeting, Nepali officials said they had not obtained the Tibetan-side glacier risk and water level data they wanted.
In the first quarter of 2026, Xiaomi's revenue was 99.1 billion yuan, a year-on-year decrease of 10.9%; adjusted net profit was 6.1 billion yuan, a year-on-year drop of 43.1%, effectively being halved.
On May 26, 2026, the UK government added Huobi Global, which operates Huobi (HTX), to its sanctions list, on the grounds that it provided funding and financial services to the Russian government.
In late May 2026, on the eve of the 37th anniversary of the June Fourth incident, public security departments in Beijing, Guizhou, Zhejiang and other places placed large numbers of dissidents, independent scholars and rights lawyers — including Gao Yu, Pu Zhiqiang, Hu Jia and Chen Xi — under assigned surveillance or took them away on forced travel.
A major collapse accident occurred at the Liushenyu Coal Mine in Shanxi. The official initial report stated 8 deaths, but after multiple revisions, the final death toll was announced as 82. The involved enterprise was exposed for severe cover-ups and illegal operations using AB blueprints.
On May 22, 2026, the securities regulator and seven other departments issued a plan to crack down on illegal cross-border securities business, and plan to impose fines totaling more than 2.2 billion yuan on Futu and Tiger; both stocks fell 30 to 40 percent before the open.
On the evening of May 22, 2026, a major gas explosion occurred at the Liushenyu Coal Mine of the Tongzhou Group in Qinyuan County, Changzhi, Shanxi, leaving 82 dead, 2 missing and 128 injured. It is the most serious coal mine safety disaster in China in nearly 17 years.
In May 2026, Li Hua, founder of Futu Securities, was fined over $270 million for "illegally facilitating cross-border investments." Futu stated that only 17% of its client assets originated from accounts in mainland China.
As of May 22, 2026, the combined net financing of urban investment bonds in Guangdong, Beijing, Shanghai and Fujian exceeded 150 billion yuan, accounting for 72% of the national total net financing.
On May 22, 2026, eight departments including the China Securities Regulatory Commission (CSRC) jointly issued a plan announcing a two-year campaign to completely ban illegal cross-border securities and futures activities. The plan specifically named Futu Securities, Tiger Brokers, and Longbridge Securities for illegal operations, proposing to confiscate illegal gains and impose fines.
On May 22, 2026, the Luchuan County Public Security Bureau in Guangxi announced that a knife attack had occurred locally, leaving 2 civilians and 5 police officers handling the case injured; the suspect was caught at the scene. Online reports said onlookers at the scene had cheered.
On May 21, 2026, Chinese judicial authorities carried out the death sentence against Xu Yao, the perpetrator who poisoned Yoozoo Games founder Lin Qi. Yoozoo Games subsequently issued a statement on May 26 confirming the news.
U.S. Acting Secretary of the Navy高雄 announced on May 19 that the MQ-25A Stingray drone received Milestone C approval and entered the low-rate initial production phase.
Two Japanese employees working at the China branches of major Japanese heavy electrical machinery giants were caught red-handed at Dalian Customs, suspected of concealing dysprosium and terbium—heavy rare earths used in high-end military applications—inside large machinery to smuggle them out of the country.
On May 19, 2026, the High Court of Hong Kong concluded the closing arguments proceedings in the case of former Hong Kong Alliance leaders Chow Hang-tung and Lee Cheuk-yan, who were charged with incitement to subvert state power, and the judge announced that the ruling on the facts of the case was expected to be formally announced in mid-to-late July of the same year.
The United States and China made commitments on issues including rare earths, Boeing aircraft, and agricultural product purchases at the Beijing summit, but there remains the question of whether China will fulfill the commitments.
The Trump-Xi summit held in May 2026 was interpreted by Miles Yu as exposing a dangerous tendency in U.S. foreign policy to replace strategic judgment with fantasy. He argues that the CCP used the summit to hype myths like the "Thucydides Trap" in an attempt to cover up its authoritarian nature, domestic dilemmas, and hostility toward the free world. The summit failed to resolve fundamental ideological conflicts and may have instead exacerbated misjudgment and appeasement.
Trump invites Xi Jinping to visit the United States at an appropriate time
Trump visited China at the invitation of Xi Jinping and held a heads-of-state summit with him; the two sides subsequently continued discussions on trade, Taiwan, and technology issues.
Health officials in the Democratic Republic of the Congo say that since the outbreak began in mid-May, at least 3,800 cases and approximately 1,707 deaths have been confirmed, with more than 700 patients currently in isolation and treatment.
Trump visited China at the invitation of Xi Jinping. The two sides reportedly established the US-China Trade Council and discussed promoting a more balanced trade relationship and expanding market access for U.S. agricultural and livestock products.
U.S. President Donald Trump and Chinese President Xi Jinping held a summit in Washington, where Xi expressed his hope that the Trump administration would handle the Taiwan issue with caution.
US President Donald Trump pays a state visit to the People's Republic of China.
Trump stated that during his visit to Beijing in May, he established a trade council with the Chinese side, and teams from both sides subsequently promoted the establishment of a more balanced trade relationship.
In May 2026, a federal jury in New York found Lu Jianwang guilty of illegally acting as an agent of the Chinese government and of obstruction of justice, charging that he participated in Manhattan in assisting China's Ministry of Public Security in establishing and operating a transnational secret police station.
Ellen Wang, formerly mayor of Arcadia in Southern California, resigned as mayor and city council member on May 11, 2026 after a plea deal came to light, and formally pleaded guilty in federal court in Los Angeles on May 29, admitting to acting as an agent of the Chinese government without registering.
On May 11, 2026, the United States announced sanctions against 3 individuals and 9 companies, accusing them of helping Iran's Revolutionary Guard ship oil to China; the companies involved are located in Hong Kong, the UAE, and Oman.
On May 11, 2026, the White House released the list of business leaders accompanying Trump on his visit to China; Secretary of State Rubio also joined the delegation. He has been sanctioned by China since 2020, and China used a new transliteration of his name this time.
On May 11, 2026, former Chinese-American mayor of Arcadia, California, Wang Ailin, formally pleaded guilty in federal court to a federal felony charge of acting as an illegal agent of the Chinese Communist Party.
The New York Times reported that since December last year, a fake Hong Kong consulting firm, under the guise of high-paying consulting work, attempted to recruit the core aide to the chairman of the US House Select Committee on the Chinese Communist Party, seeking sensitive information on China policy; the case has been handed over to the FBI.
China's two former defense ministers, Wei Fenghe and Li Shangfu, were sentenced to death with a reprieve in first-instance trials. A military newspaper published an article emphasizing the determination to fight corruption, and outside analysts believe this may be paving the way for the trial of Zhang Youxia.
Thousands of villagers protested at Maojiawan in Zhaotong, Yunnan, the second-largest poverty alleviation relocation resettlement site in China. The conflict was triggered by a monthly parking fee of 360 yuan, leading to clashes after SWAT police arrived to suppress the demonstration.
China's National Financial Regulatory Administration recently issued verbal guidance suggesting that several major domestic banks suspend issuing new RMB loans to five refineries sanctioned by the U.S. for involvement in Iranian oil transactions.
On May 6, 2026, the Central Commission for Discipline Inspection and the National Supervisory Commission announced that Fei Gaoyun, member of the Standing Committee of the CPC Anhui Provincial Committee and secretary of the Hefei Municipal Party Committee, is suspected of serious violations of discipline and law and is under investigation.
Lai Ching-te has concluded his visit to Taiwan's African diplomatic ally Eswatini. Despite encountering obstacles on his return journey when transit permits for the airspace of three Indian Ocean countries were canceled, he eventually returned to Taoyuan Airport safely aboard the Eswatini King's private jet.
Iranian Foreign Minister Araghchi traveled to Beijing to meet with Wang Yi, with China and Iran communicating on issues including the US-Iran conflict and energy trade, while the Wall Street Journal reported that China is selling materials needed for missile programs to Tehran.
On May 4, 2026, the U.S. Department of the Treasury released its financing estimate, projecting net marketable borrowing of $671 billion for the July–September quarter and assuming a cash balance of $950 billion at the end of September.
On the afternoon of May 4, an explosion occurred in a workshop of Huasheng Fireworks Display Co., Ltd. in Guandu Town, Liuyang City. The accident ultimately left 26 people dead and 61 injured. The Changsha Municipal Party Committee and Municipal Government subsequently held a press conference to apologize.
US Treasury Secretary Bessent said President Trump will use his trip to Beijing to exchange views on the US-Iran conflict, accusing China of buying 90% of Iran's energy and financing state sponsors of terrorism.
On the evening of local time May 4, Iran launched drone and missile attacks against targets inside the UAE, the Fuchaila oil industrial zone caught fire, shelter alarms sounded across the UAE, air defense systems intercepted multiple incoming missiles and drones, injuring three Indian nationals, marking the formal end of the US-Iran ceasefire agreement.
A violent explosion occurred at a fireworks factory in Liuyang, Changsha, Hunan, causing widespread destruction with casualties exceeding one hundred people.
On May 4, 2026, the High Court of Hong Kong granted a restraining order applied for by the Department of Justice, freezing HK$8.93 billion in assets belonging to 42 people including Chen Zhi and their associated companies.
A middle-aged man in Pingyang County, Wenzhou, Zhejiang, is suspected of driving away after a dispute with a shop owner over alleged shoplifting, then driving his vehicle through the streets in an act of revenge against society, killing approximately five people and injuring many others. The suspect was subsequently taken away by police, and news of the incident was quickly blocked.
On a rural road in Huangtukan Town, Dandong, Liaoning, an severely overloaded minivan lost control and crashed into a large tree by the roadside. The vehicle was packed with 21 seasonal workers picking blueberries, resulting in eight deaths and thirteen injuries.