John Ratcliffe flew to Moscow in a military cargo plane from Riga, Latvia. It is not clear whom he met or what the purpose of his trip was.

It was not immediately clear what the trip’s purpose was or whether any other senior U.S. officials were part of the U.S. delegation.

Mystery swirled around a U.S. military transport aircraft that on Tuesday landed in Moscow, according to tracking data. It was not known who was on board the plane and why it was in Russia. When asked, Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov said he did not have information about the aircraft.

The Kremlin says CIA Director John Ratcliffe held talks in Moscow with his intelligence counterparts, a rare and secretive visit at a time when relations with Washington remain strained over Russia’s war in Ukraine.

President denies visit was to gain support for Iran sanctions or due to fears that Putin plans to ‘test Nato resolve’

Russia launched a massive missile and drone barrage across Ukraine, killing at least two people and wounding 14. The attack came as peace efforts stalled and Kyiv faced shortages of Patriot air-defence missiles.

On the second day of the Vatican Secretary for Relations with States’ mission to Russia, he visited the Cathedral of Christ the Saviour, the seat of

The UK has announced it will give Ukraine classified information on components for long-range missiles. Kyiv has returned the favour to help Britain be better prepared for modern warfare. Watch Michael Clarke's latest war briefing below.