Kremlin says CIA chief's Moscow visit tied to intelligence contacts
Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov said the August 25 visit of CIA Director John Ratcliffe to Moscow was linked to contacts between Russian and US intelligence services, declining to give further details.
Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov told The Washington Post that CIA Director John Ratcliffe's August 25 visit to Moscow was connected to contacts between the Russian and US intelligence services. Asked about the purpose of the trip, he offered no further details.
On Tuesday, Peskov also said the Kremlin had no information about a US military aircraft that arrived at Moscow's Vnukovo airport. He added that the Russian side did not plan to meet with US administration officials this week.
How the visit came to light
The CBS television network was first to report on Ratcliffe's trip. The news emerged after a US Air Force Boeing C-17A Globemaster III transport plane, along with a motorcade of American diplomats, was spotted at the Moscow airport.
According to The Wall Street Journal, CIA Director Ratcliffe traveled to Moscow because the US side had gathered intelligence on early Russian preparations for a possible military mobilization. Sources said Washington had asked Kyiv to hold off attacking Moscow and St. Petersburg for a time during the CIA chief's visit.
