The CIA Director’s Not-So-Secret Trip to Moscow

This episode unpacks the potential purposes and implications of CIA Director John Ratcliffe’s recent surprise trip to Moscow.   Host: James M. Lindsay, Mary and David Boies Distinguished Senior Fellow in U.S. Foreign Policy, CFR   Guest: Stephen Sestanovich, George F. Kennan Senior Fellow for Russian and Eurasian Studies, CFR   We Discuss: What is actually known about CIA Director John Ratcliffe's unannounced trip to Moscow, and how the visit became public. Whether Ratcliffe's conspicuous arrival by military aircraft across the Latvian border suggests the publicity was deliberate rather than a failed attempt at secrecy. Competing explanations for the visit's purpose, from warning Russia against escalation to sending a message on Iran. How unusual it is for a CIA director to make such a trip, and how it compares to Bill Burns's 2021 visit to Moscow. How the intended audiences for the visit may include not just the Kremlin but also Russian and European elites, as well as the U.S. Congress as it weighs a new Russia sanctions bill. Whether the trip is part of an effort to relieve domestic political pressure on Donald Trump, who faces demands to get tough on Russia.  How the Trump administration has struggled to reconcile firmness toward Russia with openness to diplomacy, including ambiguity surrounding the Alaska summit and a proposed tripartite summit.   Mentioned on the Episode:   Vladimir Putin, with Nataliya Gevorkyan, Natalya Timakova, and Andrei Kolesnikov, First Person: An Astonishingly Frank Self-Portrait by Russia’s President Vladimir Putin, PublicAffairs   Barak Ravid, “CIA Director Ratcliffe Floated Trump-Putin-Zelensky Summit During Moscow Visit, Sources Say,” Axios   “Sanctioning Russia Act of 2025 (S.1241),” U.S. Congress   For an episode transcript and show notes, visit The President’s Inbox at: https://www.cfr.org/podcasts/presidents-inbox/the-cia-directors-not-so-secret-trip-to-moscow   Opinions expressed on The President’s Inbox are solely those of the host or guests, not of CFR, which takes no institutional positions on matters of policy.