FirstFT: Putin retaliates

Vladimir Putin has described Russia’s air strikes on Ukraine, its most extensive since the early weeks of his seven-month invasion, as retaliation for the bombing of the bridge linking the Russian mainland to Crimea.

Speaking at a meeting of his security council yesterday, Russia’s president accused Kyiv of a “terrorist attack” at the Kerch bridge on Saturday and said that “leaving such a crime without a response is just impossible”.

Putin had claimed the targets were military, energy and communications assets, but evidence of the damage showed that a playground and a bridge in central Kyiv were hit, as well as civilian infrastructure across the country. Russia’s defence ministry said its strikes “hit all the assigned targets”.

Russia’s army has been losing ground in regions of south-eastern Ukraine that Putin unilaterally claimed as part of Russia last month. On Saturday, Moscow suffered a blow after the attack on the bridge, a symbol of the 2014 annexation of Crimea.

The strikes, which killed at least 10 people and injured at least 60, according to Ukraine’s police, have exposed the weaknesses of Kyiv’s air defences.

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Thanks for reading FirstFT Europe/Africa. Now, here is the rest of today’s news — Jennifer

Five more stories in the news

1. Kwasi Kwarteng faces £60bn bill to stabilise UK finances The chancellor will need to announce a fiscal tightening of more than £60bn if he wants to convince investors that he can stabilise public finances, according to a leading think-tank. Kwarteng will set out a new debt-cutting plan and accompanying official forecasts on October 31.

• It’s not over yet: Yesterday’s sell-off in gilts pushed the government’s long-term borrowing costs to the highest point since the Bank of England stepped in last month to avert a market collapse with its bond-buying programme.

2. Berlin prosecutors pursue Lars Windhorst probe The prosecutors are pursuing a criminal investigation into potential banking act violations almost a year after the German financier and football investor claimed to have settled “pending legal disputes” over the matter. Watchdog BaFin is concerned Windhorst may have engaged in banking activities without the required licences, which could be punished with up to five years in prison.

3. Oxford/AstraZeneca nasal Covid vaccine fails in trial Oxford university said today that a nasal formulation of the vaccine elicited antibody responses in a “minority of participants”, a blow to hopes for a more effective way to prevent transmission of coronavirus.

4. Poland nears unlocking EU recovery funds Poland’s finance minister said Warsaw was “on the way” to unblocking €36bn in grants and loans before the end of the year, as she said negotiators had made significant progress in talks with Brussels. Poland is seeking to convince the EU it has instituted sufficient reforms to guarantee judicial independence.

5. Ex-Fed chair wins Nobel economics prize Ben Bernanke, the former US Federal Reserve chair, has been awarded this year’s prize in economics alongside Douglas Diamond of the University of Chicago and Philip Dybvig of Washington University in St Louis for their work on the role of banks in the economy and financial crises.

The day ahead

G7 call with Ukraine’s president Leaders will hold an emergency meeting with Volodymyr Zelenskyy to discuss Russian missile attacks yesterday.

UAE president to meet Putin Sheikh Mohammed bin Zayed al-Nahyan will travel to Moscow to meet his Russian counterpart, the UAE state news agency reported. The visit comes days after Opec+ announced an oil output cut, straining relations with the US.

Scottish independence referendum The UK Supreme Court will begin hearing arguments on the Scottish National party’s plan to legislate for a referendum next year on ending Scotland’s 315-year union with England without Westminster’s permission.

UK spy chief issues Ukraine war warning Sir Jeremy Fleming, head of British cyber intelligence unit GCHQ, will say the “costs” to Russia of Putin’s decision “in people and equipment — are staggering” and the “Russian population has started to understand that” in a speech at the Royal United Services Institute think-tank.

Meta Platforms’ Connect event The Facebook parent company will hold its annual showcase of new augmented and virtual reality products, including the much-touted headset codenamed Project Cambria. (Meta)

IMF global markets report IMF publishes its Global Financial Stability Report assessing the financial system and markets.

• Other economic indicators: The British Retail Consortium and KPMG publish their retail sales monitor, plus monthly labour market figures. The Institute for Fiscal Studies releases its Green Budget, an assessment of the UK’s public finances and growth prospects.

What else we’re reading

Most people don’t know what GDP growth is And that is a problem for UK prime minister Liz Truss, who has made it her governing mantra, writes Sarah O’Connor. Of course, faster growth would be a good thing. But it is not helpful to kick off an attempt to boost the economy with a shock that makes people feel poorer and more anxious.

Ben & Jerry’s vs Unilever The ice cream maker’s decision to end its franchise deal in Israel to prevent its product from being sold in occupied Palestinian territories has placed it at odds with its parent company, turning a star acquisition into a legal nightmare for Unilever.

Time to get excited about bonds For the first time in well over a decade, Karen Ward, chief market strategist for Europe, Middle East and Africa at JPMorgan Asset Management, is excited about bonds. For years, she felt the bond market was horribly mispriced. What’s behind the turnround in her enthusiasm?

How to make a mess of an energy windfall tax Sometimes it pays to keep things simple. The proposal to cap renewables companies’ UK revenues risks being both complex and underwhelming. Cat Rutter Pooley explains.

Why Elon Musk didn’t exit his Twitter bid Before indicating last week that he wanted to go ahead with the buyout of Twitter, the Tesla chief was apparently wavering. A US court ruling over generic drugmaker Akorn serves as a lesson of how hard it would be for any corporate acquirer to walk away, writes Sujeet Indap.

Life & arts

What is Edward Enninful’s earliest memory? What drives him? Hester Lacey sat down with the editor-in-chief of British Vogue to discuss beauty, boxing and his Boston terrier Ru.