Some US media reports on Thursday claimed that CIA Director John Ratcliffe warned Russia against attacking a NATO member country during his Moscow trip. However, Kremlin has now denied such assertions, calling them “scare-story material”.
Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov said: "A lot of this kind of scare-story material is being published right now. Of course, it has nothing to do with reality and nothing to do with the intentions of the Russian Federation."
Ratcliffe's first official visit to Moscow as CIA chief was in part because he wanted to warn Russia not to attack NATO countries, Wall Street Journal had reported. The report further said that Russian President Vladimir Putin could consider launching an assault ranging from a cyberattack to a small-scale land incursion, likely on a Baltic nation.
However, the reports have been dismissed by Kremlin as mere ‘scare-stories’.
CIA chief in Moscow
The US media reports on a possible warning to Russia against targeting NATO countries surfaced amid speculation over CIA chief John Ratcliffe's visit to Moscow.
{{/usCountry}}The US media reports on a possible warning to Russia against targeting NATO countries surfaced amid speculation over CIA chief John Ratcliffe's visit to Moscow.
{{/usCountry}}On Tuesday, data from Flightradar24 showed a US military C-17 plane travelling to Latvia and then on to Moscow, with reports saying that Ratcliffe was on that plane.
Russia later confirmed the CIA Director's trip, saying he spoke with some Russian intelligence officials but didn't speak to Vladimir Putin. However, Kremlin also said that the Russian President was are of the US spy chief's visit.
Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov also called the US spy chief's talks with Russian intelligence a “positive development”, after earlier telling Reuters that Putin did not plan to have a meeting with Ratcliffe.
Why is John Ratcliffe in Moscow?
Barring some US media reports which have now been dismissed by Russia, there is little to no clarity on why John Ratcliffe is in Russia. The White House also offered little clarity about the trip.
During an interview with radio host Glenn Beck on Wednesday, US President Donald Trump described the trip as “semi-routine” and pivoted to discussing Russia’s war with Ukraine. “Something may come out of it,” Trump said. “We’re working very hard to get that war ended and frankly they both want to see it ended at this point.”
A spokeswoman for the White House referred reporters to Trump’s Wednesday comments. A spokeswoman for the CIA declined to comment.