By Steve Gutterman MOSCOW (Reuters) – Syrian President Bashar al-Assad’s government will decide soon whether to take part in peace talks with the opposition, a senior Syrian diplomat said after talks in Moscow. Asked whether Damascus had committed to joint Russian-U.S. efforts to hold a peace conference, Syrian Deputy Foreign Minister Faisal Mekdad said: “We are still discussing these questions.” “A final decision will be taken after our return to Damascus,” Mekdad told Russian news agency Itar-TASS following talks with Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov. … Read more here: Syria to decide soon on peace talk participation: minister

DUBAI (Reuters) – Bahrain’s main opposition group suspended its participation in reconciliation talks with the government for two weeks on Wednesday, blaming the slow pace of talks and the raid last week on a top Shi’ite Muslim cleric’s home. Little progress has been achieved in the talks that began in February as part of efforts to end two years of political deadlock following pro-democracy protests by majority Shi’ite Muslims in 2011 that were crushed by the Sunni-led government. … Read more here: Main Bahrain opposition group temporarily boycotts talks

Five people are still hospitalized for respiratory illness.         Read more here: Watch: Mystery Illness Kills 2 in Alabama

DUBLIN (Reuters) – Ireland’s finance minister said on Wednesday the country did not want to become the ‘whipping boy’ for what he called a flawed U.S. Senate report into the level of corporate tax Apple Inc pays in Ireland. Ireland was forced to defend its corporate tax rate after the U.S. Senate said on Monday that Apple paid little or no tax on tens of billions of dollars in profits in Irish subsidiaries and that it had negotiated a special corporate tax rate of less than 2 percent. “I do not want to be the whipping boy for some misunderstanding in a hearing in the U.S. … Read more here: Ireland says does not want to become U.S. "whipping boy" on tax

WASHINGTON (AP) — Members of a House panel angry over sexual abuse problems in the military are set to vote on a bill that would strip commanding officers of their authority to unilaterally change or dismiss court-martial convictions — a change that lawmakers believe will lead to a cultural shift that encourages more victims to step forward. Read more here: House panel moves to curb military sexual assaults

WASHINGTON (Reuters) – The European Central Bank could expand its monetary policy toolkit if needed to respond to threats to price stability, and must ensure the euro zone economy does not enter a downward spiral, ECB Executive Board member Peter Praet said on Wednesday. “We have an objective: price stability,” Praet, who is in charge of the economics portfolio on the ECB's six-member executive board, told a conference in Washington. “If that objective is at risk, we have the possibility … … Read more here: Praet says ECB can expand its tools to fight crisis

WASHINGTON (AP) — Michelle Obama says stories of toil and sweat by slaves once housed at a historic home within sight of the White House are an important part of U.S. history that must be preserved for future generations. Read more here: First lady lauds effort to preserve DC slave house

WASHINGTON (AP) — The House has taken up a Republican-sponsored bill that would speed approval of the proposed Keystone XL oil pipeline from Canada to Texas. Read more here: House takes up GOP bill to speed pipeline approval

The New York Times’ Bill Keller suggests we should “Bring Back Ken Starr” to get to the bottom of the IRS scandal, because  “the scandal circus on Capitol Hill is a terrible distraction.” The resulting Twitter jokes compelled Keller to tweet a follow-up: “Guess when my tongue is in my cheek I should add an emoticon. Special counsel, yes, seriously. Ken Starr? .” Why the wink? We could bring the whole 1998 impeachment gang back together. A starring member, former Rep. Bob Barr, is running for Congress in Georgia again, and he’s describing himself as an “impeachment manager. … Read more here: Why Not Get the Whole 1998 Impeachment Gang Back Together?

By Emma Batha LONDON, May 22 (Thomson Reuters Foundation) – Aid agencies helping millions of people in North Korea could be forced to pull out after a Chinese bank cut ties with main foreign exchange bank, a humanitarian group said on Wednesday. The freeze – imposed amid growing concern over North Korea’s nuclear ambitions – has made it impossible for aid agencies to transfer money to fund projects, many of them aimed at helping chronically malnourished children. Some aid workers are now resorting to bringing in cash in person, putting them at personal risk. … Read more here: North Korea sanctions threaten humanitarian aid: group