CIA director Ratcliffe discussed Ukraine, Iran, and threat of attack on NATO during Moscow visit

CIA Director John Ratcliffe discussed the resumption of negotiations on Ukraine, the Iran track, and warned the Kremlin over its plans to attack NATO during his visit to Moscow.

This was reported by The Wall Street Journal, citing American and European officials.

According to the outlet, U.S. President Donald Trump decided to deploy a new intermediary after previous rounds of talks involving other trusted representatives failed to stop the fighting.

Ratcliffe’s visit was so closely guarded that even some senior White House staff and military officials who are normally briefed on such missions were not informed in advance. According to American officials, Trump personally sent the CIA director to Moscow and did not share the substance of his message with some of his closest advisers.

WSJ sources explain the choice of Ratcliffe by his successful track record of engagement with the Kremlin — in particular, in securing the release of Americans from Russia. American officials regard him as a convenient intermediary thanks to that experience, the CIA’s longstanding communication channels with Russian intelligence services, and Ratcliffe’s personal closeness to Trump.

In addition to the Ukraine topic, Ratcliffe urged Moscow not to maintain economic and defense ties with Iran amid the intensification of American sanctions against Tehran. American and European officials also claim that “the Kremlin is rewriting and discussing new plans to attack NATO,” and warning Moscow on this point was one of the goals of the CIA chief’s visit. Meanwhile, Trump, after Ratcliffe’s visit, repeatedly denied claims that Russian President Vladimir Putin intends to attack Europe.

Ratcliffe, like U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio, is considered a representative of the “hawkish” wing in Trump’s circle, which opposes any significant concessions to Russia on the terms for ending the war in Ukraine — in particular, against the withdrawal of Ukrainian forces from Donetsk Oblast, which, according to the widely circulated account, was one of the proposals discussed by Trump and Putin in Anchorage. If The Wall Street Journal’s interpretation is correct, Ratcliffe’s trip to Moscow may be part of efforts by the “hawks” to sideline Trump’s special envoys on Russia — Jared Kushner and Steve Witkoff — who are considered more inclined toward compromise with Moscow.