Zelensky meets with CIA Director in Ireland

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky met with the Director of the American Central Intelligence Agency (CIA), John Ratcliffe, during a stopover at Shannon Airport in Ireland on his way to New York, the British agency Reuters reported.

Zelensky and Ratcliffe had an informal conversation while their planes were being refueled, unnamed sources said, adding that the content of their discussion is not known.

Zelensky was on his way to New York to attend the 81st session of the UN General Assembly, while Ratcliffe was returning from a meeting with Egyptian President Abdel Fattah el-Sisi.

This meeting comes less than a month after the CIA chief traveled to Moscow, where he met with senior Russian intelligence officials to discuss, among other things, the war in Ukraine.

According to the American newspaper The New York Times, Ratcliffe urged Moscow to reach an agreement before its military and economic situation deteriorates further.

The British newspaper The Financial Times also reported in early September that Ratcliffe could be called upon to play a more prominent role in Washington’s diplomatic efforts to end the war, as the American administration considers reviewing the composition and distribution of roles within its negotiating team.