Evening Briefing: Friday 22 May 2026
- Pakistani Interior Minister Mohsin Naqvi met Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi in Tehran today for a second round of mediation talks. A Qatari negotiating team also arrived in Tehran. A third Qatari LNG tanker (Al Sahla) is transiting the Strait of Hormuz on its way to China. Pakistan and Qatar have drafted a revised memo to bridge US-Iran gaps; Saudi Arabia, Turkey and Egypt are supporting the effort.
- Andy Burnham formally launched his Makerfield by-election campaign in Ashton-in-Makerfield today — the Guardian frames it as a “thinly veiled pitch for No 10”. Burnham: “This is a change by-election. British politics needs to change its tired old script… I’m prepared to take that fight as high as I can go.” He committed publicly for the first time to wanting a proportional representation pledge in the next Labour manifesto. Sir Keir Starmer said yesterday he would “100% behind” the Labour candidate; The Times editorial today vindicates Home Secretary Shabana Mahmood’s migration programme as Labour’s “immigration success story”.
- Ukrainian forces struck Russia’s Syzran Oil Refinery in Samara Oblast yesterday — Rosneft’s plant processing 7-8 million tons of oil per year. Russia and Belarus concluded their joint nuclear-weapons exercise today, involving more than 64,000 personnel and reportedly involving the majority of Russia’s estimated 320 ICBM launchers. Brent has eased further to $102.80; ten-year gilts at 5.02%, off Friday’s 5.18% peak by 16 basis points.
Pakistan’s Naqvi Meets Araghchi Again in Tehran; Framework Talks
Pakistan’s Interior Minister Syed Mohsin Naqvi met Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi in Tehran on Friday for a second round of mediation talks aimed at narrowing the gap between Iran and the United States. The discussions focused on…
Third Qatari LNG Tanker Through Hormuz to China; Al Sahla En Route
A third Qatari liquefied natural gas tanker is transiting the Strait of Hormuz today and heading to China, as a Qatari negotiating team arrived in Tehran to try to help secure a deal to end the war with Iran. The vessel, Al Sahla, with a c…
Pakistan-Qatar Revised Memo; Iran-Oman Discussing Permanent Hormuz Toll
Iran has not yet submitted a response to the latest US proposal as multiple mediators continue to narrow gaps. Pakistan and Qatar have drafted a revised memo to bridge US-Iran gaps; Saudi Arabia, Turkey and Egypt are supporting the effort.…
Khamenei Directive Hardens Tehran’s Negotiating Position
Iran’s Supreme Leader Mojtaba Khamenei’s directive yesterday that Iran’s near-weapons-grade uranium stockpile “should not leave the country” continues to harden Tehran’s negotiating position into Friday. Trump told reporters at the White H…
Ukraine Strikes Syzran Refinery; Russia-Belarus Nuclear Exercise Concludes
Ukrainian forces struck the Syzran Oil Refinery in Samara Oblast yesterday. The Rosneft-owned plant has a processing capacity of seven to eight million tons of oil per year and produces gasoline, diesel fuel, aviation kerosene and bitumen.…
Burnham “Change By-election”; Thinly Veiled Pitch for No 10
Andy Burnham formally launched his Makerfield by-election campaign today with what the Guardian describes as “a barely coded pitch for Downing Street”, saying a vote for him would be “a vote to change Labour”. Speaking at a community sport…
Burnham — “Trend Significantly Down”; Migration “Needs to Fall Further”
At today’s Makerfield campaign launch, Andy Burnham said that UK net migration “needs to fall further”, after Office for National Statistics data on Thursday showed net migration had almost halved to 171,000 in 2025. People on the doorstep…
The Times Editorial: Mahmood’s Migration “Success Story”; Burnham “Rowed Back”
The Times editorial this evening describes Home Secretary Shabana Mahmood’s migration programme as “one of [the government’s] few success stories”: the 171,000 net-migration figure for 2025 is the lowest since 2012. The drop, the paper arg…
Starmer Says “100% Behind” Burnham; Will Campaign in Makerfield
Sir Keir Starmer told reporters on a visit to Essex yesterday he would “100% behind” Labour’s Makerfield candidate — Andy Burnham — and would personally campaign in the by-election on 18 June. “I want to be part of that, of course I do,” t…
Burnham Backs Mahmood Immigration Changes; Soft-Left Allies Run Campaign
Andy Burnham is backing Shabana Mahmood’s controversial changes to the immigration system, his allies said in an interview on Wednesday, in a blow to those in Labour who hoped to soften them. Those close to Burnham’s campaign say he will n…