CIA Director Asks Russia for 'Quiet Time' While Visiting Moscow

KEY POINTS

•CIA Director John Ratcliffe departed Washington Sunday and flew to Latvia on a U.S. government plane before heading to Moscow Tuesday.
•Ahead of Ratcliffe's visit, the U.S. informed Ukraine to suspend attacks during his Moscow talks, revealing delicate diplomatic timing.
•Ratcliffe’s trip marks the highest-level Trump administration visit to Russia since January, with the CIA declining all comment requests.

John Ratcliffe, CIA head and self-appointed President Trump extra, finally landed in Moscow Tuesday, making it the highest-profile Kremlin visit by a Trump appointee since January — because espionage apparently has an RSVP. Before jetting off from DC Sunday on a US government ride to Latvia, Ratcliffe requested Ukraine, diplomatically known as 'our buddy,' to pause strikes during his visit. Talk about a fragile cease-fire playlist curated by Uncle Sam. His grand entrance from Riga to Moscow arrived aboard a US Air Force C-17, a military flex that screams 'I'm here for serious talks and snacks.' The CIA ghosted on comments, keeping mum under that classic cloak-and-dagger vibe, and CBS was first to sniff out the whole carefully choreographed diplomatic dance.