CIA Director Makes Rare, Secret Visit to Moscow

Foreign Affairs State of the Union: The purpose of the trip remains unclear. (Photo by Anna Moneymaker/Getty Images) CIA Director John Ratcliffe arrived in Moscow on Tuesday for an unannounced visit. Ratcliffe traveled in a military cargo plane and was on the ground in the Russian capital for around eight hours, according to online flight tracking data. The reason for the visit wasn’t clear. CBS News, which broke the story, reported that Ratcliffe was in Moscow “for meetings.” Subscribe Today Get daily emails in your inbox It was the first known trip by a CIA director to Moscow since 2021, when then-Director William Burns warned Russia’s President Vladimir Putin not to attack Ukraine. The Trump administration has struggled to help end Russia’s war in Ukraine, now in its fifth year. Trump’s special envoy Steve Witkoff has made several visits to Moscow. Ratcliffe flew Sunday from Washington to Riga, Latvia, before continuing to Moscow.