Washington is testing a new approach toward Russia: Ratcliffe traveled to Moscow to push Putin toward negotiations
CIA director met with FSB Director Alexander Bortnikov and SVR Director Sergey Naryshkin in Moscow on August 25.
According to The New York Times and The Wall Street Journal, one of the main goals of the visit was to persuade the Kremlin to resume negotiations with Ukraine.
Ratcliffe gave Bortnikov a “bleak” assessment of the situation for Russia and made it clear that Moscow should make a deal now, before its position on the battlefield and in the economy gets even worse.
📍CIA director told the Russians that over 18 months, Russia has captured around 1% of Ukraine’s territory, while the average life expectancy of a Russian soldier on the front line is less than 35 minutes.
Before the trip, Ratcliffe contacted Ukrainian intelligence and assured Kyiv that he was going to Moscow not to offer Russia concessions.
Washington also has a separate calculation — Putin himself spent years working in the intelligence services, so a message from the CIA director may carry more weight in the Kremlin than ordinary diplomatic statements. The CIA also has long-standing working channels with the FSB and SVR.
📍Washington may believe that Putin’s inner circle is hiding the real situation on the battlefield from him.
US and European officials say the Kremlin is discussing new scenarios for attacking NATO countries. Ratcliffe may therefore have delivered a second warning to Moscow — not to try to test NATO’s readiness for a direct confrontation.
The trip was kept so secret that even some senior White House officials and US military commanders were reportedly unaware of it beforehand. Trump personally sent Ratcliffe to Moscow, while some of his closest advisers were not briefed on the contents of his message.
Ratcliffe and Marco Rubio are seen as representatives of the hardline faction within the Trump administration.
His trip may therefore have been more than an attempt to reach an agreement with Moscow — it could also signal a shift in Washington’s broader approach to negotiations, potentially at the expense of Steve Witkoff and Jared Kushner, who are seen as more willing to compromise with Russia.
— @nexta_tv Aug 28, 2026
Category: Tweets – Michael Novakhov (@mikenov) / Twitter
Category Added in a WPeMatico Campaign
The Washington disaster is finally coming home to roost.
CIA Director John Ratcliffe went to Moscow to persuade Russia to stop the war because Ukraine is on the verge of catastrophic collapse.
It is the clearest admission that the strategy pursued by Washington has failed spectacularly.
After years of escalation, weapons shipments, and empty promises, the same people who helped prolong the conflict are now scrambling to find an exit before Ukraine is devastated beyond repair.And then there is Iran.
Washington also asked Moscow to pressure Tehran.
The irony is almost impossible to miss. The Trump administration helped create this mess by recklessly following Israel into a confrontation with Iran,and now it needs Russia to help clean it up.This is what foreign-policy incompetence looks like: create the crisis, miscalculate the consequences, and then quietly beg your adversaries to rescue you from the wreckage.
A monumental failure of judgment,and an extraordinary legacy of strategic humiliation…..
— @ricwe123 Aug 28, 2026
JUST IN: IRAN FM ARAGHCHI:
“Putting diplomacy back on track isn’t impossible. It hinges on U.S. understanding of one simple fact: pressure doesn’t work.
The U.S. should build trust, speak respectfully, acknowledge our rights, and uphold commitments.”
— @ShaykhSulaiman Aug 28, 2026
🔴 BREAKING: Iran’s Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi says putting diplomacy back on track is possible if the United States recognizes that pressure does not work, builds trust, respects Iran’s rights and upholds its commitments.
— @AlArabiya_Eng Aug 28, 2026
Russia threatens strikes on UK military targets, ‘catastrophic consequences’ over Ukraine trib.al/W98pPtp
— @nypost Aug 28, 2026
Without China’s help, US attempt to choke off Iran’s economy is likely to fail.
Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent may have told China to “get with the programme”, but Beijing instead has defended its cooperation with Tehran and vowed to safeguard its interests
— @AFP Aug 28, 2026
🚨Update: Reports that Russia is preparing to level Kiev, destroying the city as residents flee in haste after a confrontation between Russia officials and the US CIA Spy Chief. Putin was furious at the US threats, and responded with massive strikes across Ukraine. Reports that Putin is considering a nuclear strike on Kiev.
— @defense_civil25 Aug 28, 2026
CIA Director John Ratcliffe secretly traveled to Moscow and warned senior Russian intelligence officials that Russia’s military and economic position is worsening, as US intelligence questions whether Putin is receiving an accurate picture of the war.
— @KyivPost Aug 28, 2026
⚡️’There is no problem,’ Trump says, dismissing Russia-NATO threat after CIA chief’s Moscow visit.
— @KyivIndependent Aug 28, 2026
CENTCOM announces Strait of Hormuz shipping lanes are ‘free of Iranian sea mines,’ marking ‘major milestone’ in the Iran war trib.al/5NYt8ML
— @nypost Aug 28, 2026