Bloomberg Politics
Putin’s strikes and Truss’s humiliating U-turn: Weekend Reads
October 15th 2022 8:17 AM
Bloomberg
Russia hit Kyiv and other cities with an intense barrage of missile strikes after President Vladimir Putin accused Ukraine of carrying out an attack that badly damaged a key bridge linking annexed Crimea to the Russian mainland.
British Prime Minister Liz Truss fired her friend and chancellor of the Exchequer, Kwasi Kwarteng, in a bid to stabilize markets roiled by her government’s plans to slash taxes. The move, however, still leaves her own job exposed.
In the US, races to control the Senate in next month’s midterm elections are tightening, while President Joe Biden warned of risks to global democracy as his government turns the screws on China’s economy.
And Chinese President Xi Jinping is aiming to break some key decades-old rules to stay in power, even as challenges mount on issues ranging from the economy to his strict Covid Zero policy.
Delve into these and more of Bloomberg’s top political stories in this edition of Weekend Reads. — Michael Winfrey
A screen grab from a security camera shows flames and smoke at the Kerch bridge in the Kerch Strait, Crimea, Oct. 8. Photographer: Anadolu Agency/Getty Images
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Putin Says Has No Regrets About Ukraine Invasion After Reverses
After unleashing the biggest barrage of missile strikes on Ukrainian cities this week since the early days of the war, Putin said no further such strikes are needed for now. He added that his order to call up 300,000 reservists for the fight will wrap up in a couple of weeks.
Damage in central Kyiv following a Russian missile strike on Oct. 10. Photographer: Matti Maasikas
Eight Years of Fighting Hardened Ukraine’s Army Into a Winner
When Putin ordered troops to Ukraine in 2014, they were better equipped, trained and organized — and they crushed their opponents. But as Marc Champion reports, their roles have reversed, and it’s down to the very different ways that two armies with Soviet roots have learned how to fight.
Putin Tried for Years to Stop His Military From Using Western Parts — And Mostly Failed
Russia put a plan in place three years ago to slash dependence on Western parts for its military arsenal by 2025. But as Alberto Nardelli explains, an internal review 10 months before Putin invaded Ukraine found it was falling short on almost every metric.
Desperate Bid to Save UK Premiership Lands Truss in More Trouble
Boxed in by market turmoil and a mutinous Conservative Party, UK Prime Minister Truss was left with two cards to play: hitting reset on her economic plan and firing Kwarteng. Read how she used up both — and left herself in even more peril.
Kwarteng was thrown out after just 38 days, but he spent more than a decade promoting his small-state, low-tax vision for the UK that proved to be his downfall.
His replacement, Jeremy Hunt, admitted “mistakes” had been made and said the UK faces tough choices on tax and spending.
High Priests of Trussonomics Left ‘Sad, Angry and Frustrated’
When Truss became prime minister five weeks ago, she promised to deliver radical laissez-faire economic polices to boost the economy. As Julian Harris reports, the UK’s most hard-line advocates of shrinking the government are now looking on in despair as their agenda crumbles.
Seven Senate Races Will Make or Break Biden’s Agenda
With just weeks until the congressional midterm elections, the outcome is very much up in the air. Our exclusive analysis lays out the swing states that could determine the results, from the nail-biter Senate race in Georgia, a state pivotal to Donald Trump’s presidential defeat in 2020, to the narrowing contest in Pennsylvania.
Sources: U.S. Senate, RealClearPolitics average of polls as of Oct. 12, Bloomberg research
America Is Unleashing Its Economic Arsenal Against China, Russia
The US has the world’s strongest military and some of its most potent high-tech weapons. But as Daniel Flatley reports, it’s increasingly leaning on economic measures to achieve strategic goals. And it’s no longer limiting its targets to relative minnows such as Cuba and Iran.
Jan. 6 Panel’s Vote to Subpoena Trump Caps Dramatic Hearing
The House committee investigating the attack on the US Capitol voted to subpoena Trump. Billy House and Mike Dorning report how the action opens a new legal conflict for the former president as he nears a decision on launching a campaign to return to the White House.
Inflation is spreading in the US economy, slamming the door on hopes the Federal Reserve will dial back interest-rate hikes that threaten to tip the country and perhaps the world into recession. That's bad news for Biden as his Democrats fight to maintain their slim hold on congress.
Musk Tweets Complicate US Diplomacy From Ukraine to Taiwan
Elon Musk often wields his Twitter account as a weapon — threatening to back out of his deal to buy Twitter or insulting Biden. As Iain Marlow explains, he’s recently veered into more treacherous geopolitical territory.
Best of Bloomberg Opinion This Week
- Putin’s Air-Terror Campaign Is Already Failing: James Stavridis
- We Can’t Give Putin His Off-Ramp: Andreas Kluth
- The One Thing That Can Save Herschel Walker: Joshua Green
- India’s Ukraine Balancing Act Is Getting Trickier: Mihir Sharma
- Even a Lula Win May Not Restore Brazil’s Forests: David Ficklin
Germany Saw No Risk in Russian Gas, Declassified Report Reveals
Four months before Putin invaded Ukraine, Germany still claimed that opening a new gas pipeline from Russia would pose no risk to European energy supplies. Arne Delfs writes how former Chancellor Angela Merkel argued that Moscow had always been a reliable gas supplier.
Iran Rights Groups Report Rising Child Death Toll in Protests
A rights group monitoring the protests in Iran said it had confirmed the deaths of at least 201 people since demonstrations started last month. Golnar Motevalli and Arsalan Shahla report that a charity inside the country also said at least 28 children had been killed.
Explainers of the Week
- Six Ways to Tell If Xi Wins or Loses at China’s Party Congress
- How Iran’s Hijab Protests Stoked Broader Public Anger
- Understanding the Ups and Downs of US-Saudi Relations
- How Big Food Aims to Fill Europe’s Shelves as Gas Crisis Deepens
- Why ‘NOPEC’ Keeps Arising as a US Answer to OPEC
How Xi Rewrote China's Rules to Build the Party Around Himself
Xi climbed to the center of China’s political universe by rewriting the rules. Read More about how he’ll have to break three more key ones at the congress starting on Oct. 16 to rule for years to come.
China’s Tolerance for Xi’s Unyielding Covid Fight Is Cracking
Since Covid-19 emerged in China, many have been supportive of mass testing, citywide lockdowns and strict quarantines. But as Xi is set to trumpet his strict measures to control the virus at China’s once-in-five-year party congress, signs are emerging that patience is wearing thin.
Xi’s Vow to ‘Stand Tall’ Has China on Collision Course With US
At the last Communist Party congress, Xi declared that China was “standing tall and firm in the East.” But that was five years ago: Since then the US and key allies have ratcheted up the pressure on the world’s second-biggest economy.
Cholera Outbreak Roils Haiti as Violence Hampers Aid Workers
A cholera outbreak in Haiti has killed at least 18 people and left hundreds sick. More than 260 people are suspected to be infected with the disease, though the true number is likely much higher, as violent disorder has made much of the country inaccessible, Jim Wyss reports.
Setback in Quest for Indigenous Rights Roils Chile
The abuse of the Mapuche, an indigenous group that makes up about 10% of Chile’s population, has cast a shadow over the country’s prosperity. Now, as Eduardo Thomson writes, their demands for reparations and autonomy are growing louder, with some members resorting to violence.
Carolina Soto is a Mapuche spokesperson living in Chile’s Araucanía region. Photographer: Cristóbal Olivares/Bloomberg
And finally … With the war in Ukraine threatening European energy supplies, Germany’s capital, Berlin, is finally retiring relics of the 19th century: the estimated 23,000 gas lanterns that illuminate its streets. While the rest of the planet has long since moved on to sodium, halide, and LED, the city is only now shutting the gas off as it tries to save power by also turning off lights at monuments such as the Brandenburg Gate.
Berlin started installing gas lanterns early in the 19th century. Photographer: Felix Bruggemann for Bloomberg Businessweek
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