Lithuanian President Confirms Awareness of CIA Director's Moscow Visit

Lithuanian President Gitanas Nausėda has confirmed that his government was aware of a potential visit by the CIA director to Moscow. "Yes, we knew about such a possible meeting," Nausėda stated after a meeting with European Council President Charles Michel in Vilnius.

While Nausėda declined to discuss the specifics of the meeting's content, he expressed optimism about its potential to reduce geopolitical tensions in the region. "I can only assume that this meeting is certainly aimed at reducing geopolitical tension in our region, and that makes me feel positive," the Lithuanian president said.

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Yes, we knew about such a possible meeting.

European Council President Charles Michel, who was present at the press conference, refrained from commenting on the visit. He explained that as it involved a visit by a United States institution to a third country, it was not within the EU's purview to comment.

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I can only assume that this meeting is certainly aimed at reducing geopolitical tension in our region, and that makes me feel positive.

U.S. media reports indicated that CIA Director John Ratcliffe had traveled to Moscow from Riga on a U.S. Air Force C-17 military transport aircraft. Axios, citing sources, reported that the United States had requested Ukraine to halt strikes against Russia during Ratcliffe's visit to Moscow.

Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov told The Washington Post that Ratcliffe had arrived in Moscow for security services contacts. Peskov later told Russian media that the CIA director had not met with Russian President Vladimir Putin, but provided no further details on the meetings.

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This is a visit by a United States institution to a third country, therefore we cannot comment on it.