Zelensky met CIA Director Ratcliffe in Ireland, weeks after Ratcliffe's Moscow trip

Volodymyr Zelensky spoke with CIA Director John Ratcliffe at Shannon Airport in Ireland during a refueling stop, Reuters reports, citing two sources. What they discussed is unknown.

The meeting comes less than a month after Ratcliffe flew to Moscow — the first visit by a CIA director to Russia since the full-scale war began. The Kremlin said Ratcliffe had no direct contact with Vladimir Putin but met with the leadership of Russian intelligence services. A Reuters source said he discussed Russia's war with Ukraine. The Financial Times has called Ratcliffe the U.S.'s new key negotiator on the war; the White House denied that characterization.

Zelensky is now heading to New York, where a meeting with President Donald Trump is scheduled for September 22. The Kremlin said last week that negotiations involving the U.S., Russia, and Ukraine could resume in October.

Neither Washington nor Kyiv has said what Ratcliffe and Zelensky discussed, or whether the Shannon meeting connects to the proposed October talks.