CIA Director John Ratcliffe traveled to Russia for meetings whose subject remains unclear, arriving aboard a US military transport plane that flew from Washington via Latvia. Officials on both sides declined to confirm details of the trip, which lands as US-Russia talks over Ukraine have largely stalled.
CIA Director John Ratcliffe traveled to Russia for meetings this week, though the subject of the talks was unclear, Bloomberg reported. A Boeing C-17 Globemaster III arrived at Moscow's Vnukovo airport after stopping in Latvia, on a flight from Andrews Air Force Base near Washington, according to Russia's state-run Tass news service. The plane later departed Moscow for Latvia.
Officials on both sides stay quiet
The CIA declined to comment, while the State Department and the White House did not immediately respond to requests for comment. Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov also declined to comment and said no meetings with US administration officials were planned this week.
Flight data traces the aircraft's path
Flight-tracking data showed the aircraft, carrying US-registered tail number 07-7181, flew directly from Riga, Latvia, and arrived at about 0700 GMT, Reuters reported. Reuters could not verify whether the plane carried passengers or cargo. The aircraft had arrived in Riga on Aug. 23 from Camp Springs airbase near Washington, according to the same tracking data.
The trip follows the last direct flight in January
Before this flight, the last direct trip by a US-registered jet from Europe to Russia was in January, when special envoys Steve Witkoff and Jared Kushner traveled for talks with President Vladimir Putin about Ukraine. That flight came as US-Russia discussions on Ukraine have largely stalled amid the war in Iran. The visit also comes amid increased concern about Russian sabotage efforts in Europe, with US efforts to end Russia's war against Ukraine led by special envoy Steve Witkoff.
The Kremlin said last week it had no information about another Moscow visit by Kushner and Witkoff.
Sources: Crypto Briefing, Crypto Briefing
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