Contacts have intensified in Washington and Moscow regarding a possible end to Russia's war against Ukraine. CIA Director John Ratcliffe discussed the possibility of a meeting between Trump, Zelensky and Putin in Moscow, while the American side continues to monitor Russia's actions regarding NATO. In parallel, Russia is intensifying missile and drone strikes on Ukraine and threatening British military targets due to Ukraine's use of Storm Shadow. Against this background, the United States is also bringing to justice those who helped circumvent sanctions and supply aircraft spare parts to Russia.
CIA Director Suggests Meeting Between Trump, Zelensky and Putin
CIA Director John Ratcliffe, during a secret visit to Moscow, suggested holding a trilateral meeting between US President Donald Trump, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky and Kremlin leader Putin. According to Axios, the purpose of such a meeting would be to end Russia’s war against Ukraine. This was the first time that Ratcliffe personally joined diplomatic efforts aimed at a possible breakthrough in the negotiations between Ukraine and Russia. The American side had previously put forward the idea of a trilateral summit, which Zelensky supported, but Putin rejected it.
Ratcliffe’s trip to Moscow took place on August 25, where he met with the head of Russia’s Foreign Intelligence Service, Sergei Naryshkin, and the director of the FSB, Alexander Bortnikov. According to Axios sources, one of the tasks of the visit was to find out whether the heads of Russian intelligence services could convince Putin to take a step towards resuming negotiations with US mediation. On August 28, American officials informed Zelensky about Ratcliffe’s talks in Moscow and the proposal for a trilateral meeting.
Russian citizen in the United States found guilty of illegal supplies of aircraft parts to Aeroflot
A court in the United States has found 62-year-old Russian citizen Alexander Mamonov guilty of illegally exporting aircraft parts from the United States to Russia and the state-owned airline Aeroflot. Mamonov, who lives in Florida, was found guilty on 12 counts related to a scheme to circumvent US export controls. These include conspiracy to violate the Export Control Reform Act, illegal exports, smuggling, making false statements and conspiracy to launder money. U.S. District Court Judge Kathleen M. Williams has set a sentencing date for November 20.
“Mamonov illegally exported nearly $1 million worth of aircraft parts to Russia, deceiving American suppliers about their destination, and this conviction brings him to justice on all counts,” said Roman Rozhavsky, deputy director of the FBI’s Counterintelligence and Espionage Division.
According to the case file, Mamonov previously worked for Aeroflot and, after moving to South Florida, entered into a conspiracy with Russian citizen Ignat Vakorin. Together, they purchased and shipped more than $900,000 worth of aircraft parts to Russia, including for Aeroflot, despite the United States tightening export restrictions after the start of a full-scale war. Vakorin, who was indicted along with Mamonov in April 2025, remains wanted.
Russia launches massive strike on Kyiv and other regions of Ukraine
Russia launched a massive missile and drone strike on Ukraine, attacking ports, industrial enterprises, energy facilities and logistics infrastructure. According to the Ukrainian military, 258 strike drones and ballistic missiles were used during the attack. In Kyiv, air defenses worked against waves of drones, and debris from downed targets injured four people. Meanwhile, in Kharkiv, one person was killed and two others were injured in a strike on a shopping mall.
In the Kyiv region, Russian strikes damaged or destroyed the logistics centers of major Ukrainian companies, including COMFY and one of the leading toy manufacturers. Roshen also reported the destruction of one of its warehouses near Kyiv. Strikes on industrial, energy and other facilities were recorded in Poltava and Odessa regions, as well as in Kryvyi Rih, and trains were delayed in several regions due to the attack. Ukrainian Foreign Minister Andriy Sybiga said that Russia attacked ports, grain silos, energy, industry and other infrastructure with ballistic and hypersonic missiles and attack drones. According to the Russian Defense Ministry, Ukrainian logistics centers and three ports in the Odessa region were also hit, and six Russian drones crossed Moldovan airspace.
Trump said that Putin would not attack NATO countries, and downplayed the significance of Ratcliffe's visit to Moscow
US President Donald Trump said that Russia will not attack the territory of a NATO country. He commented on reports that CIA Director John Ratcliffe had visited Moscow and warned Russia about possible attacks on the Alliance country. Trump said that Ratcliffe did not travel to Russia to deliver any specific message. According to him, the CIA director meets regularly with his Russian counterpart, and they have a good working relationship.
“He is not going to attack NATO territory,” Trump said of the Russian leader, speaking to reporters in the Oval Office. At the same time, two sources told Reuters that during the meeting, Ratcliffe did raise the issue of a possible Russian operation against a NATO country, although it is not known whether this was the main purpose of his trip. According to one of the sources, the parties also discussed other issues, in particular, Russia’s support for Iran, which is causing discontent in Washington. American and European intelligence agencies have long been monitoring Russian sabotage and other activities in the so-called gray zone aimed at weakening NATO unity and the readiness of the Alliance countries to support Ukraine.
Russia threatened to strike British military targets due to Ukraine's use of Storm Shadow missiles
Russia has threatened to strike British military facilities in Ukraine and beyond in response to the Ukrainian military's use of British long-range missiles to strike targets on Russian territory. The corresponding statement was made by Russian Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Maria Zakharova. She said, that London is allegedly "one step away" from legal involvement in what Moscow calls "terrorism" against Russian civilians. The Russian department also warned of "inevitable catastrophic consequences" if the UK does not change its policy towards Ukraine.
“We have repeatedly warned that any British military facilities and equipment in Ukraine and beyond could be targets in response to Ukrainian strikes on Russian territory carried out using British weapons,” Zakharova said.
She also called on the British leadership to abandon a “hostile, aggressive line” and said that the UK and France were allegedly “playing with fire” by supplying Ukraine with missile technology. London responded by saying that it stood “shoulder to shoulder” with Ukraine and would continue to provide it with equipment to protect against Russian aggression. Moscow’s statement came after the UK decided to provide Ukraine with access to classified technologies to begin its own production of Storm Shadow cruise missiles, capable of striking at considerable distances.
Photo: REUTERS/Nathan Howard/Pool
Author: Danylo Pievchev