The morning opened with polling giving Retailleau a slight edge over Philippe in the presidential race. Trump's administration temporarily lost its battle to ban Harvard from hosting foreign students after a judge blocked the decision. By midday, Trump threatened to impose 50% tariffs on European goods starting June 1st, sending European markets tumbling as Brussels demanded "respect" in negotiations.
The Russia-Ukraine prisoner exchange dominated afternoon news, with 390 people freed in the first phase of a planned "1,000 for 1,000" swap. Zelensky confirmed exchanges would continue through the weekend, while Russia announced it would present peace conditions following the exchange.
Evening headlines focused on a knife attack at Hamburg's train station that injured 17 people. The ongoing Gaza crisis continued receiving coverage, with the Council of Europe condemning Israel's actions as "moving toward ethnic cleansing and genocide" despite 100 humanitarian trucks entering the enclave.