CIA Director John Ratcliffe made a secret visit to Russia without prior announcement. The exact purpose of his trip remains undisclosed amid mounting tensions in Europe following the discovery of a mysterious drone.
U.S. news outlet CBS reported that John Ratcliffe, Director of the Central Intelligence Agency (CIA), visited Moscow, Russia's capital, unannounced on Tuesday, 25 Aug 2026. Neither Washington nor Moscow has confirmed the purpose of the visit.
Flight tracking data from FlightRadar24 confirmed that a large U.S. military transport plane traveled from the U.S. to Russia via Latvia on Tuesday, returning the same day.
Meanwhile, video footage shared on social media showed a C-17 transport plane landing at Vnukovo International Airport in Moscow.
FlightRadar24 data showed the plane departed from Riga Airport in Latvia at 05:50 GMT and landed in Russia's capital around 07:04 GMT before returning to Riga shortly before 17:00 GMT.
Additionally, social media clips reportedly showed a diplomatic motorcade traveling through Moscow.
This visit is believed to be Ratcliffe's first to Russia as CIA Director, although he has maintained contacts with intelligence officials in Moscow continuously.
John Foreman, former British military attaché in Moscow from 2019 to 2022, told Radio 4's PM program that the visit might focus on "managing the situation to prevent conflict escalation" after several explosive drone sightings in Germany, believed to be Russian actions.
"The U.S. normally does not send officials of this rank to Moscow without prior short-notice announcements unless something significant is underway," Foreman added, suggesting the trip might relate to securing the release of Americans detained in Russia.
Ratcliffe previously played a role in negotiating the release of Xenia Karellina, a Russian-American dual citizen imprisoned in Russia for over a year on charges of aiding Ukraine.
Furthermore, the CIA was involved in a 2024 prisoner exchange with Russia that led to the release of Wall Street Journal reporter Ivan Gershkovich, former U.S. Marine Paul Whelan, and Alsu Kermasheva, an American journalist of Russian descent.
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Source:bbc