CIA Director John Ratcliffe made an unannounced visit to Moscow for secret meetings after a US military Boeing C-17 Globemaster transport aircraft arrived in the Russian capital. Neither Washington nor Moscow officially disclosed the purpose of the visit, Ratcliffe’s meeting partners, or the issues to be discussed. The trip comes as relations remain sharply strained over Russia’s war in Ukraine.

Flight-tracking data indicated that a large US military aircraft travelled from the United States to Russia via Latvia on Tuesday before later leaving Moscow for Riga. Videos on social media showed a C-17 approaching Moscow’s Vnukovo International Airport and a diplomatic motorcade on Moscow streets, though Ratcliffe’s presence in that convoy could not be independently verified.

A senior Ukrainian official told CBS that Kyiv had been informed of a high-level US delegation’s planned Moscow visit and was asked to pause attacks until it departed Russia. Former British military attaché John Foreman said the visit could concern de-escalation, while the release of detained US citizens might also be discussed. Ratcliffe previously played a significant role in talks securing Ksenia Karelina’s release.