FirstFT: US casts doubts on Kremlin claims of curtailed Kyiv offensive

The US has expressed doubt that Russia was curtailing its military ambitions in Ukraine despite Kremlin claims that it was reducing operations around Kyiv and had made progress in peace talks with Ukrainian negotiators.

Russia’s defence ministry yesterday insisted it was withdrawing from population centres in Ukraine’s north and west. The claims came as US officials said there was mounting evidence that Vladimir Putin felt “misled” by his military commanders about how the war was playing out.

Declassified intelligence showed Putin had been unaware the Russian military was using conscripts in Ukraine, indicating a “clear breakdown” in the flow of accurate information to the Kremlin, one US official said.

Ukrainian president Volodymyr Zelensky also warned his country not to “lose vigilance” after Russia’s announcement of a drawdown around Kyiv.

US and European officials, meanwhile, are united in opposing linking progress in peace talks with lifting sanctions against Moscow.

More on Ukraine:

• International response: Joe Biden pledged $500mn in economic assistance in a telephone call with Zelensky yesterday, while China said it wanted to raise bilateral relations with Russia “to a higher level”. Europe will use what is likely to be a tense virtual summit tomorrow to pressure Beijing over its ties to Moscow.

• Energy: Germany and Austria took formal steps towards gas rationing as a stand-off over payments threatens a potential halt in Russian deliveries.

• Sanctions: The UK had given eight sanction-hit oligarchs “golden visas”. Antigua has asked the British government to establish whether two yachts are owned by a sanctions-targeted oligarch. Holland & Barrett has been left in limbo over a debt payment held up by HSBC over sanctions concerns

• Opinion: 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. Helen Thomas argues that recent volatility brings a chance to force corporate investment in decarbonisation.

Thank you to those who participated in yesterday’s poll. More than half agreed with Gideon Rachman that Nato should not directly intervene in the Ukraine war. Follow the latest on the invasion in our live blog. Here’s the rest of today’s news — Jennifer

Five more stories in the news

1. 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.

2. Sorrell’s S4 delays results S4 Capital lost more than a third of its market value after Sir Martin Sorrell’s advertising business issued a notice saying that its auditor, PwC, had not been able to sign off on its results just hours before they were due to be published.

3. Australian groups pledge £28.5bn UK spending Australian investors are focusing on British clean energy, technology and infrastructure projects with £28.5bn in spending over the next decade, Downing Street said.

4. Shapps fails to win industry support for plan targeting P&O Ferries The British government plans to force ferry operators to improve seafarers’ pay by empowering ports to block access to vessels from companies that do not pay the minimum wage. But the initiative, aimed at forcing P&O Ferries to rehire 800 staff, has run into opposition from ports.

5. US regulators outline Spac reforms The US securities regulator has proposed sweeping reforms of special purpose acquisition companies, including stripping them of legal safeguards that have allowed sponsors to present rosy forecasts to potential investors.

Coronavirus digest

• BioNTech plans to return nearly €2bn to shareholders through share buybacks and a special dividend following the commercial success of its Covid-19 vaccine.

• As infections reach a record high, experts warn that the UK’s plans to scale back free tests within days may be premature. Britons are bracing for a tough month ahead — Darren Dodd explains why in Disrupted Times, our newsletter on changes in business and the economy between Covid and conflict. Sign up here.

• Boris Johnson and his deputy prime minister Dominic Raab are at odds over whether officials who attended parties during lockdown broke the law.

• A senior adviser to Hong Kong’s leader said that the city was not abandoning its commitment to China’s zero-Covid policy despite easing some restrictions.

The day ahead

Nato annual report Jens Stoltenberg, secretary-general, presents the military alliance’s annual report in Brussels. (Nato)

• UK military: Admiral Sir Tony Radakin, head of the armed forces, and David Williams, the government’s civilian defence adviser, will discuss the country’s defence priorities.

Ukraine updates Officials from Gazprom, the government and the central bank are set to report to Vladimir Putin with a clear mechanism to facilitate payments in roubles for Russian gas. A Russian ceasefire is set to begin in the besieged Ukrainian city of Mariupol at 10am, according to Moscow’s military TV channel Zvezda, while Sergei Lavrov, Russia’s foreign minister, arrives in India for talks.

• In the oil market: All eyes will be on Opec’s ministerial meeting after G7 leaders called on the group to boost output to compensate for disruption from the invasion of Ukraine. Crude prices fell about four per cent on expectations that Joe Biden would announce another release of oil from emergency stocks today.

Fifa congress Leaders will meet in Qatar, where the final draw will be made for the World Cup in the country this year. The prospect of a biennial World Cup, however, has fallen off the agenda. (AFP)

Economic data It’s a big day for economic indicators. The EU publishes its February employment rate, while Germany has retail trade data for the same month. February producer price index and early March consumer price index data are out for Franc, while. Germany and Italy have March labour market figures. Economists expect US consumer spending to rise for the second consecutive month in February. (FT, WSJ)

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

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 ‘crypto caucus’ A bipartisan mix of libertarians, business champions and technology utopians is uniting on legislation to help the sector grow. This eclectic group could become one of the most powerful on Capitol Hill as US lawmakers rush to set the rules for the fast-growing industry.

Should you bring your dog to the office? This week’s edition of the Working It podcast delves into perhaps the most divisive issue in the workplace. Presenter Isabel (a cat person) talks to Lindsay Bumps (a dog person) from ice-cream maker Ben & Jerry’s, which allows pooches at work.

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.