US-Moscow Talks

CIA Director John Ratcliffe flew to Moscow for meetings on Tuesday, according to U.S. media citing unnamed sources. Neither the U.S. government nor the Kremlin has officially confirmed the trip, and Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov declined to comment.

Flight tracking data showed a U.S. Air Force Boeing C-17 Globemaster landed at Moscow's Vnukovo airport around 07:00 GMT after a direct flight from Riga, Latvia. The aircraft had arrived in Riga on August 23 from Andrews Air Force Base near Washington. The Financial Times reported that Washington asked Ukraine to refrain from striking Moscow and other northern Russian areas on Monday through Wednesday to facilitate a senior official's visit.

The journey marks the first direct U.S.-registered flight to Russia from Europe since January, when envoys Jared Kushner and Steve Witkoff traveled to Moscow for Ukraine peace talks with President Vladimir Putin. Trump said on August 11 he had secured the release of detained former Marine Robert Gilman through personal discussions with Putin.

A U.S. Air Force Boeing C-17A Globemaster III landed at Moscow's Vnukovo airport on Tuesday, according to flight tracking data, in an unusual visit whose purpose has not been officially explained.

The aircraft, bearing the call sign RCH4555, arrived from Riga, Latvia, after a multi-day journey that began on Aug. 22 at a base in New Jersey. The Kremlin said it had no information about the landing, and the U.S. administration has issued no official statement on the reason for the visit. Details about the aircraft's cargo and passengers remain unknown.

The flight coincided with a scheduled meeting in Moscow between Vatican envoy Paul Richard Gallagher and Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov. Social media speculation has linked the visit to a possible prisoner exchange between Washington and Moscow. Russian authorities had in recent months been expecting a visit from U.S. presidential envoy Steve Witkoff and Jared Kushner.

Vatican Secretary for Relations with States Paul Richard Gallagher arrived in Moscow on Sunday for a diplomatic mission lasting through Aug. 28, marking the first visit by a Holy See foreign minister to Russia since November 2021, before the outbreak of the war in Ukraine.

Gallagher is scheduled to meet Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov on Monday and hold talks with Yuri Ushakov, a foreign policy adviser to the Russian president, on Tuesday. He will also meet Metropolitan Anthony of Volokolamsk, a senior Russian Orthodox Church official.

The visit comes under Pope Leo XIV, who was elected in May 2025, as the Holy See continues its diplomatic engagement amid the ongoing conflict.