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CIA Director John Ratcliffe proposed a trilateral meeting between U.S. President Donald Trump, Russian President Vladimir Putin and Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy during a covert visit to Moscow earlier this week, Axios reported Saturday, citing two sources briefed on the matter.
The proposal was part of an effort to revive U.S.-mediated negotiations aimed at ending the Russia-Ukraine war. Ratcliffe’s visit also sought to assess whether senior Russian intelligence officials could help persuade Putin to return to talks, according to Axios.
U.S. officials briefed Zelenskyy on Friday about Ratcliffe’s discussions in Moscow and the proposed summit.
The Trump administration has previously raised the possibility of a three-way meeting. Zelenskyy has supported the idea, while Putin has rejected it.
Ratcliffe traveled covertly to Moscow on Tuesday and met Russian Foreign Intelligence Service chief Sergey Naryshkin and Federal Security Service Director Alexander Bortnikov, Axios reported.
Trump described Ratcliffe’s trip as “standard business” and said it was not intended to warn Moscow against a possible attack on NATO territory.
The New York Times reported that Ratcliffe gave Bortnikov “a bleak assessment” of the state of the war and urged Russia to reach an agreement before its position worsened.
Sources told Axios that Ratcliffe viewed Bortnikov as a constructive figure who could potentially help restart diplomatic efforts.
Ukrainian officials remain highly skeptical about Putin’s intentions and say intelligence indicates Russia may be preparing a major escalation.
Zelenskyy’s deputy chief of staff Pavlo Palisa told reporters Friday that Putin had ordered the Russian military to prepare several scenarios for an offensive in northern Ukraine, with Kyiv and Chernihiv among the key areas, according to the Kyiv Independent.
Peace negotiations mediated by the Trump administration have been paused since mid-February, when the war with Iran began.
White House envoys Steve Witkoff and Jared Kushner have held separate talks with Russian and Ukrainian negotiators in recent months, but little progress has been made.
Zelenskyy’s chief of staff Kyrylo Budanov said Thursday that U.S.-mediated negotiations with Russia could resume in September, according to local media reports.
Zelenskyy on Friday thanked the U.S. for “the necessary tone of the conversation with Russia,” saying the Trump administration “is advancing a realistic vision of what needs to be done and what must be achieved.”
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