Vladimir Putin “massively misjudged” the invasion of Ukraine, according to a British spy chief who said that Russian soldiers were refusing to carry out orders, were sabotaging their own equipment and had mistakenly shot down their own aircraft.
Jeremy Fleming, head of Britain’s signals intelligence agency GCHQ, said in a speech in Australia that Putin had “overestimated the abilities of his military to secure a rapid victory” and that his advisers were “afraid to tell him the truth” about a campaign that was “beset by problems”.
US officials concurred with the British view and cast doubts on Russian claims of a withdrawal from Ukraine’s cities in the north and west.
John Kirby, Pentagon spokesperson, said yesterday that the US believed Russia was repositioning just a “small percentage”, about 20 per cent, of its forces amassed around Kyiv.
He added that while those troops were moving away from Kyiv, and some had entered neighbouring Belarus, none were heading back to their home bases — a signal Russia may not be committed to a sustained withdrawal.
Ukrainian president Volodymyr Zelensky addressed the Australian parliament today and called for further military assistance and stricter sanctions on Russia.
More on Ukraine:
Energy markets: The Biden administration is considering releasing up to 1mn barrels of oil a day from its strategic reserves, the third and potentially largest oil release since November. Prices of Brent crude, the international benchmark, dropped nearly 4 per cent today and WTI, the US marker, was 5 per cent lower.
Telecoms: Huawei, the controversial Chinese technology company, has been an early winner of the Ukraine war and is positioning itself to be an aid to the Putin regime.
Finance: In the first few days of the war the wealthy clients of New York hedge fund Firebird called to enquire about their portfolios. “It’s been a very difficult and disappointing time,” co-founder Harvey Sawikin said.
Ukraine diary: Journalist Tim Judah chronicles the first 21 days of the war in this picture diary of his reporting trip to Ukraine.
Opinion: Ukraine’s former president Petro Poroshenko outlines what next the west can do to help his country. The war is an opportunity for Europe to reinvent itself and uphold the rule of law, writes Tony Barber. The FT View is that Moscow has a history of treating ceasefires as a military tactic, rather than steps towards peace.
Podcast: Gideon Rachman talks to Catherine Belton, author of the bestselling book Putin’s People, in the latest episode of Rachman Review.
Thanks for reading and here’s the rest of today’s news — Gordon
Five more stories in the news
1. Biden to use Korean war-era powers to boost supply of EV battery minerals The Biden administration will invoke Korean war-era powers to boost domestic supply of minerals crucial for electric vehicles and large capacity batteries, as it tries to reduce its dependence on overseas energy.
2. China’s manufacturing and services activity contracts The official manufacturing and non-manufacturing purchasing managers’ index contracted in March for the first time in almost two years, highlighting the economic strains of the government’s strict coronavirus measures.
3. Will Smith faces possible suspension from Academy The group behind the Oscars is weighing disciplinary actions against actor Will Smith, including possible expulsion or suspension. The Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences’ board of governors met yesterday to discuss how Smith should be punished.
4. SoftBank to slow investments The Japanese group’s billionaire founder Masayoshi Son has warned top executives to slow down investments as the world’s largest tech investor scrambles to raise cash amid a rout in tech stocks and regulatory crackdown in China.
5. BioNTech to return almost €2bn to shareholders The German biotech, which launched the first Covid-19 vaccine in partnership with Pfizer, plans to return nearly €2bn to shareholders through share buybacks and a special dividend following the commercial success of its Covid-19 vaccine.
The day ahead
Opec+ meets Oil producing countries led by Saudi Arabia meet today amid calls from western leaders for the cartel to increase production. Oil prices have risen 40 per cent this year linked to concerns about supplies from Russia not reaching customers in Europe and sanctions on Russian exports.
Ukraine updates Officials from Gazprom, the Russian government and central bank are set to report to Vladimir Putin with a clear mechanism to facilitate payments in roubles for the country’s gas. Sergei Lavrov, Russia’s foreign minister, arrives in India for talks. Meanwhile, Liz Truss, UK foreign secretary, is also in India to put pressure on the government of Narendra Modi to condemn Russia’s invasion of Ukraine.
Monetary policy Federal Reserve Bank of New York president John Williams gives opening remarks before the hybrid “The Future of New York City: Charting an Equitable Recovery for All” event hosted by the Federal Reserve Bank of New York.
Economic data The Commerce Department is scheduled to release consumer spending data for February. A report by the Labor Department is expected to show that initial claims for state unemployment benefits rose 10,000 to a seasonally adjusted 197,000 for the week ended March 26. The claims report is also expected to show that the number of people receiving benefits after an initial week of aid remain unchanged at 1.350mn for the week ended March 19.
Earnings Walgreens Boots Alliance, which is in the process of selling UK chemist Boots, is expected to report higher profit and revenue, helped by an Omicron-driven increase in demand for Covid-19 vaccines.
Join us on Thursday May 5 in person or online for a discussion on the power of the individual investor with Merryn Somerset Webb and the FT’s Claer Barrett. Register here.
What else we’re reading and listening to
Meet the ‘crypto caucus’ A bipartisan mix of libertarians, business champions and technology utopians is uniting in Washington to help the sector grow. This eclectic group of US lawmakers could become one of the most powerful groups on Capitol Hill to shape the rules for the fast-growing industry.
Why does Netflix cancel so many shows? There has been outrage over Netflix abruptly ending popular series, seemingly with no explanation. The most recent victim was The Babysitters Club, a TV series based on some 1990s books about pre-teen girls navigating their adolescence in suburban Connecticut. US media correspondent Anna Nicolaou explains.
Emmanuel Macron struggles to rediscover winning spirit Five years ago, Macron stormed his way to the French presidency after a frenetic campaign. Now, as he seeks a second term, his team worries that he is spending too much time on the war in Ukraine and has become a distant establishment figure to voters.
The mobile apps that are helping to bring financial literacy skills to overlooked groups A new generation of fintech start-ups like Your Juno, Wealth8 and Bloom Money are providing education on all things money for traditionally overlooked groups, such as young women and minority groups.
Health and wellness
Tired, unfocused brain in need of a boost? The traditional recourse — coffee — is, it turns out, very pre-pandemic. Enter the latest nootropics — cognitive enhancers that will take users up and up.
Source: Economy - ft.com
