The Kremlin has rejected reports that CIA Director John Ratcliffe warned Russia not to attack a NATO member country during his unannounced visit to Moscow and described these claims as “scaremongering“ that have nothing to do with reality, DPA reported, quoted by BTA.
“Of course, these claims have nothing to do with reality”, Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov told journalists today. He said that Moscow prefers to achieve its goals peacefully, but the “special military operation” - the Kremlin's official term for the war against Ukraine - will continue to protect Russia's interests and guarantee its security.
Peskov also accused the West of aggressive behavior. "This aggression comes from European countries," he said, describing claims to the contrary as "simple media fabrications."
Before Russia's invasion of neighboring Ukraine, Moscow officials also dismissed reports in Western media that it was preparing for war as "scaremongering."
Since then, Ukraine has received significant support from Western countries for its defense.
The Wall Street Journal and Politico, citing unnamed sources, reported yesterday that during his visit to Moscow on Tuesday, Ratcliffe warned Russia not to attack NATO allies. Little is known about the content of his conversations.
According to “Politico“ The CIA director has warned Russia against escalation, especially with regard to NATO's eastern Baltic partners, and has also called on the Kremlin to reduce its military and financial support for Iran.
Ratcliffe's visit has attracted particular attention in the Baltic states because he is believed to have flown to Moscow via the Latvian capital Riga. The route of the US military transport plane he is believed to have been travelling on has been tracked by flight tracking websites, but no one in Riga would comment on the flight.
Representatives of the governments of Estonia, Latvia and Lithuania have stressed that the level and assessment of the military threat have not changed. “The risk of a direct Russian invasion is currently low“, Latvian President Edgars Rinkėvičs wrote on Facebook. “However, various sabotage, cyberattacks and hybrid operations.“
Similar statements were also made by representatives of Estonia and Lithuania.
Earlier today, the head of the Russian Foreign Intelligence Service, Sergei Naryshkin, confirmed that he had met with Ratcliffe, but did not provide details about the content of the conversation. According to Russian news agencies, he stated that they discussed issues within the competence of the intelligence services.
Naryshkin described the meeting as a “working format“ and said that there was nothing unusual in it, adding that he regularly holds such conversations with heads of intelligence services from other countries – in person or online.
US President Donald Trump confirmed Ratcliffe's visit during the conservative host Glenn Beck's radio show, but denied that it was related to a possible Russian attack on NATO or the conflict in Iran. According to Trump, the visit was “semi-routine“. He added: “We would like to see an end to the war in Ukraine“.
Peskov confirmed that Ratcliffe had come to Moscow for “intelligence services” talks, but stressed that he had not met with Putin.
This was likely Ratcliffe's first visit to Moscow as CIA director. The last known visit by a CIA director to Russia was in 2021, when then-director William Burns traveled to Moscow and met with Putin.
Burns was sent by then-US President Joe Biden to help prevent an escalation of the conflict in Ukraine. However, in February 2022, Putin launched a full-scale Russian invasion of Ukraine.