Key facts
- President Trump stated that Russian President Vladimir Putin will not attack a NATO country.
- Trump described CIA Director John Ratcliffe's trip to Moscow as "semi-routine."
- Reports indicated Ratcliffe's visit was to warn Russia against attacking NATO members.
- Intelligence suggested Russia was considering a cyberattack or land incursion on a Baltic nation.
- Ratcliffe's visit was the first by a CIA director to Russia since late 2021.
U.S. President Donald Trump asserted on Thursday that Russian President Vladimir Putin would not attack a NATO country, while also downplaying reports that CIA Director John Ratcliffe had recently traveled to Moscow to deliver a warning. Trump told reporters that Putin "is not going to attack a NATO territory."
Earlier in the day, Trump told Axios that there would be no such attack and that Ratcliffe's visit was "semi-routine," with no unusual message conveyed. He suggested that Ratcliffe meets his Russian counterpart periodically. However, a report from The Wall Street Journal indicated that Ratcliffe's four-hour visit on Tuesday was specifically to warn Russia against attacking NATO members, citing intelligence that Putin might be considering a cyberattack or a small-scale land incursion, potentially targeting a Baltic nation.
This visit marked the first known trip to Russia by a CIA director since William Burns visited in late 2021, preceding Russia's invasion of Ukraine. Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov confirmed Ratcliffe had "contacts with the intelligence services" and that Putin was briefed, though he did not participate directly. Trump also suggested that Ratcliffe might be discussing efforts to end the Russia-Ukraine conflict, a war he claimed would never have started under his administration.