CIA Director John Ratcliffe's secret Moscow talks took an unexpected turn

WASHINGTON, DC: CIA Director John Ratcliffe proposed a Trump-Putin-Zelensky summit during a covert Moscow visit, adding a direct diplomatic role to his intelligence discussions.

Ratcliffe also explored whether Russia's intelligence chiefs could help persuade Vladimir Putin to resume US-mediated negotiations with Ukraine.

The proposal came during Ratcliffe's meetings with Russian intelligence officials, according to two sources briefed on the talks, Axios reported on Saturday, August 29.

John Ratcliffe floated summit idea in Moscow

The sources told Axios that Ratcliffe proposed a trilateral meeting between President Trump, Russian President Vladimir Putin and Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky as part of efforts to end the war.

The Trump administration has raised the summit idea before, and Zelensky has supported it, the report said.

Putin, however, has previously rejected the proposal, according to the report.

Ratcliffe's trip was partly intended to assess whether Russia's intelligence leadership could help move Putin toward restarting US-mediated negotiations, the sources said. 

He met with Sergey Naryshkin, head of Russia's SVR foreign intelligence service, and FSB Director Alexander Bortnikov.

US officials briefed Zelensky on Friday about Ratcliffe's Moscow talks and the summit proposal, as per the report.

Zelensky later thanked the United States for what he called "the necessary tone of the conversation with Russia."

He said the Trump administration "is advancing a realistic vision of what needs to be done and what must be achieved."

CIA director talks went beyond routine intelligence

The sources said Ratcliffe also floated the possibility of reigniting peace talks and concluded that Bortnikov was a constructive player who could help restart diplomatic efforts, as per the report.

The New York Times reported that Ratcliffe gave Bortnikov "a bleak assessment" of the war and urged Russia to reach a deal before its situation worsens.

Trump separately described Ratcliffe's Moscow visit as "standard business" and said it was not intended to warn Russia against attacking NATO territory. 

The president told Axios that Ratcliffe sees his Russian counterpart periodically and that "there was no message and there was nothing unusual."

Naryshkin also characterized his meeting with Ratcliffe as routine, saying the talks were "a regular part of their work" and that "there was nothing out of the ordinary." 

He said the two discussed "intelligence matters."

Ukraine remains skeptical of Vladimir Putin's intentions

The diplomatic outreach comes as Ukrainian officials express skepticism about Putin's intentions and cite intelligence suggesting Russia is preparing for a major escalation, the outlet reported.

Zelensky's Deputy Chief of Staff, Pavlo Palisa, said Friday that Putin had ordered his military to prepare several operational scenarios for an offensive in northern Ukraine, identifying Kyiv and Chernihiv as key areas.

Negotiations mediated by the Trump administration were paused in mid-February after the war with Iran started. 

White House envoys Steve Witkoff and Jared Kushner have since held separate talks with Russian and Ukrainian negotiators, but little progress has been made, as per the report.

Zelensky's Chief of Staff, Kyrylo Budanov, told local media Thursday that US-mediated talks with Russia could resume in September.

Zelensky had also told Axios in July that Putin was planning a mobilization of 500,000 troops in the coming months for a renewed offensive, while claiming Russia was building infrastructure for 30,000 additional North Korean troops to fight in Ukraine.

In recent weeks, Russian drones that entered the airspace of NATO members including Romania and Poland were shot down, the report said. 

The Russian Foreign Ministry also said Britain and France were "playing with fire" by supplying technology enabling Ukraine to conduct long-range attacks deep inside Russia, it added.