CIA Director John Ratcliffe traveled to Moscow to meet with Russian officials approximately three to four weeks prior to.
Posted by Inside Trump's Head, Checked
- Sources
- 2 contradict2 support
- Said
- 2 times·
- Confidence
- 60%
Inside Trump's HeadSep 6, 2026
The core claim holds: multiple outlets (Reuters, BBC, CBS, CNN) report CIA Director John Ratcliffe traveled to Moscow on Tuesday, August 25, 2026, to meet Russian intelligence officials, though the Kremlin says he did not meet Putin.
A detail. The sources confirm the gist; the verdict faults a detail such as a date, number or wording.
What was said
… I mean, threats, in a sense, that begin to destabilize the world order in ways that we haven't seen, I don't know, in my memory. So John Ratcliffe went to see him, what, three weeks ago, four weeks ago? It was the first time the head of the CIA had been to Russia since, ah, before the Russia ukraine war. Trump dismissed the trip as, "Oh, this is routine. This is routine. CIA directors do this all the time," which is not true. Do you think Putin is trying to drive a wedge between the CIA and Steve Wickoff and Jared by shouting them out? …
The Daily Beast Podcast · · from the transcriptPost →What we found
Contradicts. The trip took place on August 25, 2026, about two weeks before the September 8 posting date, so the claimed 'three to four weeks' timing does not match the reporting.[1][2]
Supports. Reuters reports that Ratcliffe traveled to Moscow on Tuesday for meetings with Russian officials, citing U.S. media reports.[1]
Supports. BBC and CNN describe an unannounced Tuesday visit by Ratcliffe to Moscow, with the Kremlin saying he held talks with Russian intelligence counterparts but did not meet Putin.[3][4]
Supports. CBS News reports that sources said Ratcliffe was in Moscow for meetings on Tuesday, and that Kremlin spokesman Peskov confirmed talks with Russian intelligence officials.[2]
Context. The claimant's own passage hedges on the timing ('three weeks ago, four weeks ago?'), and the sources do not indicate a different date for the trip.
Sources
4 sources: 1 fact-checker, 2 tier 2, 1 tier 1
- 1US spy chief visits Russia for meetings, media reportsreuters.com · fact-checker · cited for: contradicts, supports
- 2CIA Director John Ratcliffe visits Russia, on what was a secret tripcbsnews.com · tier 2 · cited for: contradicts, supports
- 3CIA head's visit to Moscow was 'semi-routine', says Trumpbbc.com · tier 1 · cited for: supports
- 4CIA Director John Ratcliffe makes unannounced visit to Moscow ...cnn.com · tier 2 · cited for: supports
Where this claim was made
Said in 2 published posts
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