United States

Ealier today, Barack Obama became the first sitting US president to visit the memorial of the American atomic bombings of Japan in Hiroshima, however without offering no apology for the attacks. The trip comes amid Japanese protests over alleged crimes committed by US troops stationed in Japan.

"We have a shared responsibility to look directly in the eye of history. We must ask what we must do differently to curb such suffering again," Obama said in a speech at the memorial. Some of the speech highlights:

• Oil prices ease from seven-month high to below $49 (Reuters)
• Wall Street Waits for Yellen Before Taking Off for a Long Weekend (BBG)
• Donald Trump Celebrates Clinching GOP Delegate Race (WSJ)
• Trump vows to undo Obama's climate agenda in appeal to oil sector (Reuters)
• Japan Fails in Bid to Have G-7 Warn of Global Crisis Risk (BBG)
• Valeant Rejected Joint Takeover Approach From Takeda, TPG (WSJ)
• Activist William Ackman, Valeant Investor, Tries Life as an Inside Man (WSJ)

In a world where fundamentals don't matter, everyone's attention will be on Janet Yellen who speaks at 1:15pm today in Harvard, hoping to glean some more hints about the Fed's intentionas and next steps, including a possible rate hike in June or July. And with a long holiday in both the US and UK (US bond market closes at 2pm today), it is no surprise overnight trading volumes have been dreadful, helping keep global equities poised for the highest close in three weeks; this won't change unless Yellen says something that would disrupt the calm that’s settled over financial markets.

Following the propagandist double-speak gushing forth from the Obama administration over when a "boot on the ground" in Syria is a "boot on the ground," the following photographs via Agence France-Presse confirm US special operation forces in a rural village 40 miles from Raqqa.

The Dalai Lama has praised Russian President Vladimir Putin for his brave and relentless crusade against ISIS in the Middle East, saying that he believes that the U.S. government are responsible for their creation.  The Tibetan Buddhist spiritual leader urged the Obama administration to alter America’s catastrophic foreign policies in the Middle East before its too late. Awdnews.com reports: His remarks came at Moscow’s Bolshoi Theatre, where he inaugurated the 2nd Dalai Lama international festival dubbed “Tibet: Traditions, Art, Philosophy and Peace”.