US asks Ukraine to halt strikes, then Trump's spy chief makes secret Russia trip

CIA Director John Ratcliffe made an unannounced visit to Moscow on Tuesday to hold meetings with Russian officials, in a rare high-level US-Russia engagement amid stalled efforts to end the war in Ukraine and growing tensions between Washington and Moscow over Iran, according to US media reports.The purpose and substance of Ratcliffe's meetings were not immediately disclosed. A US official who confirmed the visit to the media declined to say whom Ratcliffe met or what was discussed, while the CIA declined to comment. The Kremlin initially said it had no information about the visit or any planned meetings with US officials, adding to the secrecy surrounding the trip.Ahead of Donald Trump's spy chief's visit to Moscow, the United States asked Ukraine to temporarily halt drone and missile strikes on Moscow and other cities in northern Russia, CNN reported.The visit marks Ratcliffe's first known trip to Russia since he became CIA director under Trump. It is also the first publicly known visit by a sitting CIA director to Moscow since November 2021, when then-CIA chief William Burns travelled to Russia and met President Vladimir Putin amid growing concerns over Russia's military buildup around Ukraine. US MILITARY AIRCRAFT LANDS IN MOSCOWDetails of Ratcliffe's presence in Moscow emerged after a US Air Force Boeing C-17 Globemaster III military transport aircraft landed at Moscow's Vnukovo International Airport early Tuesday.Flight-tracking data indicated that the aircraft had departed from Joint Base Andrews near Washington and stopped in Riga in Latvia, before continuing to Moscow. The aircraft later departed the Russian capital, with reports indicating that Ratcliffe's stay lasted only several hours. The movement of the aircraft and a US diplomatic motorcade in Moscow helped reveal the otherwise undisclosed visit. The Washington Post reported that publicly available footage showed vehicles with diplomatic plates travelling through central Moscow.The White House, Pentagon, CIA and US Air Force did not publicly announce the trip. Officials familiar with the visit spoke on condition of anonymity because they were not authorised to discuss the matter. Latvian Defence Ministry officials also declined to provide any details and just said the flight had been properly coordinated.VISIT COMES AMID STALLED UKRAINE TALKSThe CIA chief's Moscow trip comes at a sensitive point in US efforts to broker an end to Russia's war in Ukraine.Negotiations involving Washington, Moscow and Kyiv have struggled to produce a breakthrough, while fighting has continued into the fifth year of Russia’s full-scale invasion. Ukrainian long-range strikes have increasingly reached deep inside Russian territory, while Moscow has maintained its campaign of drone and missile attacks against Ukraine.The last known visit by a CIA director to Moscow, by Burns in November 2021, also took place against the backdrop of heightened tensions over Ukraine. Burns travelled to Moscow as US intelligence assessed that Russia was preparing for a possible invasion. He warned Putin and senior Russian officials about the consequences of an attack. Russia launched its full-scale invasion of Ukraine several months later, in February 2022.IRAN SANCTIONS ADD ANOTHER LAYERRatcliffe's trip also coincides with escalating US-Iran tensions and Washington's efforts to pressure Tehran economically.US Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent announced on Monday a new strategy dubbed "Operation Economic Outcast", aimed at isolating Iran by imposing penalties on countries and entities that continue doing business with Tehran. Russia is a strategic partner of Iran, adding another potential dimension to the CIA director’s discussions in Moscow.Russia has maintained close relations with Iran, including cooperation in defence and other strategic areas. Moscow has also been accused by Ukrainian and Western officials of supporting Tehran, including through the provision of intelligence or other assistance, although Russian officials have denied some of those allegations.The Wall Street Journal reported that another possible focus of Ratcliffe's trip could be US intelligence assessments about Russia's military intentions, including concerns that Moscow could be preparing for further mobilisation or seeking to test Nato's resolve. Those possibilities have not been officially confirmed as the reason for the visit.For now, the precise objective of Ratcliffe's Moscow mission remains unclear. What is known is that the CIA chief travelled secretly to Russia, met or was expected to meet Russian officials and did so at a moment when Washington is simultaneously trying to navigate the Ukraine war, rising US-Iran tensions and its broader relationship with Moscow.- EndsPublished By: Nitish SinghPublished On: Aug 26, 2026 07:03 IST