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🇬🇧 United Kingdom /Conflict & Security

Kremlin Dismisses CIA Chief's Moscow Visit Reports as 'Scare Stories'

From The Guardian · () English

Translated from English and summarized by DistantNews. Read the original for the full story.

At a glance

News Named sources Ongoing story
  • The Kremlin has dismissed US media reports suggesting Russia could attack a NATO member state as "scare stories."
  • Kremlin spokesperson Dmitry Peskov stated these reports have no basis in reality or Russia's intentions.
  • CIA Director John Ratcliffe reportedly met with Russia's SVR foreign intelligence chief Sergei Naryshkin during his visit.

The Kremlin has strongly refuted reports from US media suggesting that Russia might attack a NATO member state. Kremlin spokesperson Dmitry Peskov characterized these publications as "scare stories" with no connection to reality or the Russian Federation's intentions.

A lot of this kind of scare-story material is being published right now. Of course, it has nothing to do with reality and nothing to do with the intentions of the Russian Federation.

— Dmitry PeskovDismissing US media reports about potential Russian attacks on NATO as baseless.

These dismissals come in the wake of reports from The Wall Street Journal and CBS News, which claimed that CIA Director John Ratcliffe's visit to Moscow this week was aimed at warning Russia against attacking NATO members. US intelligence assessments reportedly indicated that Moscow might seek to test the alliance's resolve.

He’s there, you know, very sort of semi-routine. I hate to disappoint people. We would like to see the war with Ukraine end.

— Donald TrumpDownplaying the significance of CIA Director John Ratcliffe's visit to Moscow.

Ratcliffe reportedly traveled to Moscow on Tuesday. Earlier on Thursday, Sergei Naryshkin, the head of Russia’s SVR foreign intelligence service, confirmed he had held a "working-level meeting" with Ratcliffe. Naryshkin described the discussions as covering unspecified, sensitive matters within the purview of their respective intelligence agencies, adding that such meetings were not unusual.

John Ratcliffe is a fantastic guy. He’s the head of the CIA, and he is not in there for any of the things that you said.

— Donald TrumpDefending CIA Director John Ratcliffe amid speculation about his Moscow visit.

US President Donald Trump downplayed speculation surrounding Ratcliffe's visit, calling it "very sort of semi-routine." He stated that Ratcliffe was not in Moscow for the reasons speculated upon and expressed a desire for the war in Ukraine to end, suggesting both sides wanted a resolution. Ratcliffe's visit marks one of the highest-level engagements between US and Russian officials since the conflict in Ukraine began in 2022.

I hate to disappoint people. We would like to see the war with Ukraine end.

— Donald TrumpExpressing a desire for the end of the war in Ukraine.
About this summary

Originally published by The Guardian in English. Translated, summarized, and contextualized automatically by DistantNews, with a note on how the source frames the story. Not individually reviewed before publishing. How this works.

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