FBI Director Kash Patel plans to visit Russia in October

FBI Director Kash Patel is planning to travel to Russia in mid-October 2026, Politico reported, citing sources.According to one source, Patel will fly first to Moscow, then continue on to St. Petersburg. The visit is expected to last two days, October 14–15.The Federal Security Service (FSB) leadership is expected to host Patel during the trip. Whether he will meet with Russian President Vladimir Putin or any of his aides is not known, nor is it clear what topics will come up during the visit.Politico cautioned that the travel plans are preliminary and remain subject to change.Patel is planning to visit Russia amid the ongoing standoff between Washington and Moscow over the war in Ukraine, and at a time when members of Congress are calling for new, sweeping sanctions against Russia.The last FBI director to visit Russia was Robert Mueller, in 2013. Mueller was later appointed special counsel to investigate Russian interference in U.S. elections.Patel, a Republican, is widely believed to have played a key role in efforts to discredit the investigation into Trump’s possible ties to Russia. He himself has called the matter the “Russiagate hoax.”At Meduza, we are committed to transparency about our use of artificial intelligence in the newsroom. The story you’re reading was written by one of our living, breathing journalists and translated from Russian using an AI model configured to follow our strict editorial standards. This translation process is the result of extensive testing and refinements to ensure our English-language coverage is timely and accurate. A Meduza editor reviews every draft before publication.If you find any errors in this translation, please contact us at [email protected].To read Meduza’s exclusive content in English, please subscribe to our newsletter.