According to a report by the Russian TASS news agency on August 26, the director of the CIA visited Moscow without prior announcement. Dmitri Peskov, a spokesman for the Kremlin, stated that CIA Director John Ratcliffe traveled to Moscow on August 25 in order to facilitate contact between the two countries' intelligence agencies.
According to reports, Ratcliffe arrived in the Russian capital earlier on the 25th. Face-to-face talks between senior U.S. and Russian officials are extremely rare. Ratcliffe seems to be one of the highest-ranking U.S. officials visiting Russia during President Donald Trump’s second term.
Flight tracking data confirmed that a large American military aircraft flew from the United States to Russia via Latvia on Tuesday, and departed later in the day. Videos posted on social media showed the C-17 transport aircraft approaching Moscow’s Vnukovo International Airport.
According to FlightRadar24 data, the aircraft took off from Riga Airport in Latvia, Europe, at 8:50 local time. It landed in the Russian capital at around 10:04, and returned to Riga before 20:00.
A Ukrainian high-level official stated in an interview with CBS that the US had informed Ukraine beforehand that a senior delegation would be visiting Moscow, and requested Kyiv to suspend attacks "before the delegation departs."
This visit is considered the first time since Latcliffe took office as the CIA Director that he has visited Russia, although he has always maintained contact with Moscow’s intelligence counterparts.
John Foreman, who was the British ambassador to Moscow, told the BBC that given the recent speculation regarding drone activities in Germany and the involvement of Russia, the focus of this visit might be "to control the escalating situation." He said, "Americans generally wouldn't send officials of such a high level to Moscow so soon, without prior announcement, unless something significant has happened."
Folman also stated that this visit may also involve the issue of releasing American citizens currently detained in Russia. Latcliffe was involved in negotiations that led to the release of Ksenia Kaleina, a woman with American-Russian dual citizenship—she had been imprisoned in Russia for more than a year due to accusations of providing support to Ukraine.
The CIA also participated in a prisoner exchange agreement with Russia in 2024, which led to the release of The Wall Street Journal reporter Evan Geshkovich, former U.S. Marine Paul Whalen, and Russian-American journalist Alisa Kurmashova.
According to Tass on the 26th, Russian President's press secretary Peskov said that there was no meeting arranged between Ratcliffe and Putin during Ratcliffe's visit to Russia.
