Kremlin reveals why US spy chief visited Moscow
CIA Director John Ratcliffe's visit to Russia coincides with ongoing conflict in Ukraine and Iran
The US CIA Director John Ratcliffe visited Moscow on Tuesday, raising questions related to his untimely visit to Russia especially at a time when the US is entangled in the Iran war.
Ratcliffe’s secret trip to Moscow raised several questions and gave momentum to theories related to his motive behind the visit. In the midst of growing speculations, the Kremlin reveals why the US spy chiefs visited Moscow.
Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov told reporters Ratcliffe did not meet President Vladimir Putin during the visit and held talks with his Russian counterparts. President Putin had been briefed on the outcome of talks with Ratcliffe.
"All I can tell you is that there have been contacts via the security services. I can tell you that there have been no meetings with the Russian president. Naturally, President Putin is kept informed of everything without delay," said Peskov.
"These contacts often continue even during the most difficult periods in bilateral relations. Our president, incidentally, has spoken about this. However, it is still too early to say to what extent this will, overall, help to steer our bilateral relations out of the profound crisis in which they currently find themselves," he added.
However, Peskov has declined to reveal what has been discussed during the meetings.
There are growing speculations that talks were about Iran. Being a major ally of Iran, Russia was asked to convince Tehran to open the Strait of Hormuz. Some speculations linked the visit with the US effort to bring Russia to a negotiable table to end conflict in Ukraine.
