Axios: CIA director proposed Trump-Zelensky-Putin summit during Moscow trip
According to Axios sources, CIA Director John Ratcliffe proposed a trilateral meeting between Trump, Zelensky and Putin during a secret Moscow visit aimed at ending the war. US officials briefed Zelensky on the proposal on Friday.
US outlet Axios reports, citing sources, that CIA Director John Ratcliffe proposed holding a trilateral meeting between US President Donald Trump, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky and Russian ruler Vladimir Putin to end the war, during a secret trip to Moscow earlier this week.
According to the outlet's sources, one purpose of Ratcliffe's visit was to determine whether the heads of Russian intelligence services could help persuade Putin to move toward resuming negotiations with Ukraine under US mediation.
The report states that on Friday, US officials briefed Zelensky on Ratcliffe's talks in Moscow and the proposal for a trilateral summit. The Trump administration had floated this idea before — Zelensky supported it, while Putin rejected it.
On Tuesday, Ratcliffe made a secret trip to Moscow, meeting with Russia's Foreign Intelligence Service chief Sergei Naryshkin and FSB director Alexander Bortnikov. Trump said Ratcliffe's visit was a "routine matter" and was not meant to warn Russia against attacking NATO.
Axios sources said US officials also told Zelensky that Ratcliffe discussed the possibility of resuming peace talks while in Moscow. The New York Times reported that during talks with FSB director Bortnikov, the CIA chief gave a pessimistic assessment of how the fighting was going for the Russian army. Axios sources added that Ratcliffe concluded Bortnikov was a constructive player who could help revive diplomatic efforts.
Context
In a radio interview Wednesday morning, Trump denied suggestions that Ratcliffe's trip was meant to persuade Putin not to test NATO's resolve or attack Britain, which this week pledged to increase its support for Ukraine. Trump called the visit "semi-routine" but acknowledged its purpose was to end the war. The Kremlin said the CIA chief's visit was related to contacts between Russian and US intelligence services.
Politico, citing its own anonymous sources, reported that during his Moscow visit Ratcliffe urged Russian officials to avoid actions that could escalate confrontation with US NATO allies, including Estonia, Latvia and Lithuania. Ratcliffe's diplomatic mission to Russia this week was so confidential that even some senior White House officials were unaware of it beforehand.
