Kremlin: CIA Director's Visit to Russia Constitutes "Intelligence Agency-level Contact"
Russia's presidential press secretary Peskov, responding to The Washington Post, stated that the purpose of U.S. CIA Director John Ratcliffe's recent visit to Moscow was "contact between intelligence agencies," though he revealed no specific details. Peskov further explained to TASS that Ratcliffe's meeting with President Putin "was not planned."
CIA Director Ratcliffe made an unannounced surprise visit to Moscow on August 25. He arrived at Vnukovo Airport from Riga via a U.S. Air Force C-17 military transport aircraft and departed on the same plane around 7 p.m. that evening.
There are two main speculations regarding the purpose of this visit: one suggests it relates to efforts to secure the release of American citizen Charles Zimmermann, who was sentenced by Russian authorities; the other comes from a report by The Wall Street Journal, claiming Ratcliffe’s trip was intended to deliver a "warning" to Putin—U.S. intelligence indicates that Russia is preparing for mobilization to continue its military operations in Ukraine and may be planning provocative actions against NATO member states to "test NATO's resolve."
Original article: toutiao.com/article/1874571466723403/
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