The outgoing head of the Secret Intelligence Service sits down for lunch with FT editor Roula Khalaf to discuss the rise of China, why Putin is not interested in talks — and how screen spies aren’t always far from the truth. Tap here to read the interview on.ft.com/4oDfuJt

Ukraine’s daring drone pilots once ruled the skies. Now, with the emergence of an elite Russian drone unit, one of Kyiv’s biggest tactical advantages has been overturned, threatening to change the course of the war. An #FTEdit 🧵 on how the hunters became the hunted 👇

Latest: Volodymyr Zelenskyy sought to shield himself on Wednesday from a spiralling corruption scandal in Ukraine, as he called on two allies to resign from his cabinet and moved to impose sanctions on his ex-business partner. on.ft.com/4o31SWY

Just in: Jeffrey Epstein said that Donald Trump 'spent hours at my house' with a woman later identified as a victim of sex trafficking, according to emails that raise fresh questions about the relationship between the late paedophile and the US president on.ft.com/3LXOdTm

Development: Ukraine suspended a top minister on Monday as it grappled with a sweeping investigation into graft in the energy sector that has implicated allies of President Volodymyr Zelenskyy. on.ft.com/4i5taKL via @fabricedeprez.bsky.social

UK national security adviser Jonathan Powell tried to open a back channel to Putin as Britain and its closest EU allies feared the Trump administration could sideline their interests over Ukraine. The Kremlin confirmed our reporting on the outreach. Scoop w/ FT comrades on.ft.com/4nWDWnX

Totally surreal Mad Max shit. This is Russian forces entering Pokrovsk on the E50 highway under cover of fog. 🎥 Video from Telegram. How are they able to do this? In large part because of their manpower advantage. Read @fabricedeprez.bsky.social’s story about that here: www.ft.com/content/ebdf...

Ukraine’s top anti-corruption authorities searched properties linked to government officials and a former business partner of President Zelenskyy as part of a sweeping investigation into alleged graft in the country’s energy sector. w/ @fabricedeprez.bsky.social www.ft.com/content/ac5c...

A large Russian air attack that overwhelmed Ukrainian air defences overnight targeted substations that power two of Ukraine’s nuclear power plants, according to the country’s foreign minister and a person with knowledge of the barrage. w/ @fabricedeprez.bsky.social www.ft.com/content/474e...

In a first-of-its-kind ​t​ria​l​​ in Ukraine, Russian soldier Dmitri Kurashov ​was convicted ​​b​y a court of ​​executing​ Ukrainian soldier Vitalii Hodniuk ​a​s he surrendered on the battlefield and sentenced to life imprisonment​. We mentioned the case in our FT investigative doc film below.

Big wins for Dems — and for NYC’s next mayor. Zohran Mamdani, a democratic socialist who seized on discontent with the high cost of living, was elected New York City mayor on Tuesday, as Democrats swept elections across the US in a rebuke to Donald Trump and his Republican party. on.ft.com/4qGLoGk

Russia has started using jet-powered glide bombs to hit targets far beyond the frontline, an upgrade to Moscow’s arsenal that poses further strains on Ukraine’s stretched air defences. via @fabricedeprez.bsky.social on.ft.com/3Lq9Rzt

New: Trump cancelled his Budapest summit with Putin after a Russian memo to Washington holding firm to hardline demands on Ukraine was swiftly followed by a tense call between Rubio and Lavrov. Moscow would not negotiate. w/ @maxseddon.bsky.social @a-mackinnon.bsky.social www.ft.com/content/d665...

The US cancelled the planned meeting in Budapest after a memo from Russia’s foreign ministry was swiftly followed by a tense call between the two countries’ top diplomats ft.trib.al/5MyfI4n

Steel tycoon Lakshmi Mittal’s energy joint venture in India purchased Russian oil transported on sanctions-listed vessels, according to an analysis of satellite imagery, shipping data and customs records by the FT on.ft.com/3WZkFHh

Stopped by the @financialtimes.com mothership in London this week and spotted our recent award for our investigative documentary film published earlier this year about Russia’s executions of Ukrainian soldiers.

Awful news. Olena Hubanova and Yevhen Karmazin, Ukrainian journalists working for TV channel Freedom, were killed in a Russian Lancet drone attack in Kramatorsk, according to the city’s mayor and local media reports. This makes three deaths of journalists in eastern Ukraine just this month.

The US is imposing sanctions on Russia’s two biggest oil companies, Rosneft and Lukoil, aiming to “degrade” Putin’s war chest and support Trump’s effort to end the war in Ukraine. The move marks the first time the Trump administration has imposed direct costs on Moscow over its full-scale invasion.

'As of Monday, roughly 8 per cent of US warships deployed globally were in the Caribbean, according to a fleet tracker. Until destroyers arrived to start the build-up in August, the only US ship spotted in the region by the tracker this year was a hospital ship.' www.ft.com/content/dc10...

Another hellish night in Ukraine. The air force said Russia launched 28 ballistic and cruise missiles and 405 drones predominantly aimed at critical infrastructure. But at least seven people were killed by strikes on residential building. on.ft.com/47l1SLk

A huge Russian missile and drone attack on Kyiv and other cities across Ukraine on Wednesday damaged energy and railway infrastructure and killed at least seven people, as US President Donald Trump’s latest peace efforts appeared to unravel. on.ft.com/3JqQ3LL

Sheesh. The Netherlands has curtailed intelligence co-operation with the US over fears the Trump administration could use it to violate human rights or assist Russia. www.ft.com/content/af80...

Ukraine and its European allies are insisting negotiations to end the war with Russia be based on current front lines, after mixed signals from the White House over US President Donald Trump’s willingness to endorse Moscow’s territorial demands. www.ft.com/content/22b3...

“We see President Trump’s efforts to bring peace to Ukraine, all these efforts are welcome but we don’t see Russia wanting peace,” warned @kajakallas.bsky.social. Europeans rush to Zelenskyy’s defence after tense Trump meeting w/ @alicemhancock.bsky.social @andybounds.bsky.social on.ft.com/48F4aaz

Zelensky clearly annoyed with Steve Witkoff, who views the war as some sort of real estate transaction & pushes Kremlin talking points. Recently he pushed Kyiv to accept Putin's demand for the rest of the Donbas because "it was incorporated into [Russia's] constitution." Read Zelensky's comments:

Trump told Zelenskyy he was losing the war, warning: “If [Putin] wants it, he will destroy you” The US president threw Ukraine’s battlefield maps to one side & said he was “sick” of seeing the frontline again & again Scoop w @christopherjm.ft.com @maxseddon.bsky.social & @a-mackinnon.bsky.social

Breaking news: Donald Trump urged Volodymyr Zelenskyy to accept Russia’s terms for ending its war in a volatile White House meeting on Friday, warning that Vladimir Putin had said he would 'destroy' Ukraine if it did not agree on.ft.com/4ou5h1A

NEW:Trump urged Zelenskyy to accept Russia’s terms for ending its war in a volatile White House meeting on Friday, warning that Putin had said he would “destroy” Ukraine if it did not agree. The meeting between Trump and Zelenskyy descended many times into a “shouting match” on.ft.com/3WMSQSu

Trump had signaled willingness to send Tomahawk missiles to Kyiv and even said he believed Ukraine could win back lost territory. But he changed tack Friday, saying he didn't want to escalate the war and the warring sides "should stop where they are." www.ft.com/content/dcc3...

US President Donald Trump is unlikely to approve the sale of the long-range weapons to Nato allies for onward delivery to Kyiv, US and Ukrainian officials told the Financial Times. www.ft.com/content/d5fe... via @financialtimes.com

The EU has offered to use part of a proposed €140bn loan backed by Russia’s frozen assets to buy US weapons for Ukraine, provided Washington keeps supporting Kyiv in defending itself against Russia. www.ft.com/content/d5fe... via @paolatamma.bsky.social @financialtimes.com

The Ukrainian delegation is “very nervous” and uncertain of what clear victories they will gain from President Volodymyr Zelenskyy’s meeting with Donald Trump at the White House on Friday, according to a senior official from the country. www.ft.com/content/d5fe... via @financialtimes.com

Insight — Putin’s influence over Trump remains strong There is no foreign leader who has appeared more able to manipulate Donald Trump than Vladimir Putin. www.ft.com/content/d5fe...

Trump-Zelenskyy live: US and Ukrainian leaders set for White House meeting Follow our @financialtimes.com live blog here: on.ft.com/3W7Peub

Trump gave Putin a red carpet welcome in Alaska. But Putin stuck to his maximalist demands & gave a rambling historical discursion that caused Trump to raise his voice & threaten to walk out. Read our story @maxseddon.bsky.social @henryjfoy.ft.com @a-mackinnon.bsky.social www.ft.com/content/7af3...

So bear this imperfect information issue in mind if you assume that the only rational choice for Putin would be to enter negotiations because of a lack of battlefield progress and extreme casualty rates. h/t @christopherjm.ft.com www.ft.com/content/7af3...

This to me is the most revealing sentence in this article. 👇 Outside observers often assume that senior military commanders in the rear and political decision-makers possess a clear understanding of the battlefield situation and the relative status of their forces.

After showing openness to supplying Ukraine with Tomahawk missiles, Trump – following his phone call with Putin on Thursday – played down the chances of the weapons for Kyiv. “We need Tomahawks for the United States of America too... “I mean we can’t deplete our country.” on.ft.com/3J4jDqo

Good morning, Asia. While you were sleeping, our most-read story was about the US president's plans for further talks with his Russian counterpart on.ft.com/4nPztUR

How dozens of Trump’s donors have benefited from his second term on.ft.com/4o1zdlU

Zelensky has now landed in Washington ahead of his meeting with Trump tomorrow. “Moscow is rushing to resume dialogue as soon as it hears about Tomahawks,” he says of the Putin call with Trump which came at the Kremlin's request.

Donald Trump said on Thursday that he would again meet Vladimir Putin for talks seeking to end the war in Ukraine. And of all places, in Budapest. “The threat of Tomahawks pushed Putin to hurry up,” said a senior Ukrainian official. w/ @a-mackinnon.bsky.social on.ft.com/3IYYmyh

It honestly blows my mind how this is all in plain sight on.ft.com/4hxfyrD

What are the US Tomahawk missiles Trump is considering for Ukraine? Why does Kyiv want them? What are the risks and limitations? We spoke to several experts. Read our FT explainer, w/ @henryjfoy.ft.com and Steff Chávez. on.ft.com/46UypJp

Last night, Russia launched a 6th massive attack on Ukraine gas infrastructure since Oct 1, Naftogaz CEO tells me. Direct missile + drone hits Several important facilities suspended Gas production knocked out, forcing more imports Naftogaz asking "everyone to use gas as sparingly as possible."

🇬🇧🇺🇦 London friends! Join me at legendary Frontline Club on Oct. 27 to discuss Ukraine, Russia & the war with excellent colleagues Orysia Lutsevych of @chathamhouse.org Ukraine Forum & Francis Dearnley of Ukraine: The Latest podcast fame. Hope to see you there. www.eventbrite.co.uk/e/panel-disc...

First reported by @financialtimes.com: Trump will welcome his Ukrainian counterpart Volodymyr Zelenskyy in Washington on Friday for talks about how they can force Vladimir Putin to the negotiating table, including the possibility of supplying long-range Tomahawk missiles to Kyiv. on.ft.com/42FIJCx

NEWS: President Trump plans to welcome President Zelenskyy in Washington on Friday, three people familiar with the plans tell me. This comes after two phone calls between the presidents last weekend during which they discussed Tomahawk missile sales and how to end Russia's war.

Free link: on.ft.com/435Cvfi Ukraine hit Russian energy sites with US help

The previously unreported support has intensified since midsummer and has been crucial in helping Ukraine carry out attacks that Joe Biden’s White House discouraged, according to multiple Ukrainian and US officials familiar with the campaign. on.ft.com/3W1U8c0