This article was originally published by Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty and is reprinted with permission.
U.S. Central Intelligence Agency Director William Burns has traveled to Moscow for talks with Russian officials amid persistent tensions between the two countries.
Burns and Nikolai Patrushev, the head of Russia’s Security Council, “discussed Russian-U.S. relations,” the council’s press service said in a short November 2 statement.
“CIA Director William Burns, at the president’s request, is leading a delegation of senior U.S. officials to Moscow on November 2 and 3,” the U.S. Embassy in Moscow said.
“They are meeting with members of the Russian government to discuss a range of issues in the bilateral relationship,” it added.
Russia’s ties with the United States are at post-Cold War lows, strained by issues including Russia’s meddling in elections, Moscow’s annexation of Crimea, the conflict in eastern Ukraine, cyberattacks allegedly from Russian hackers, and the poisoning of Kremlin critic Aleksei Navalny.
U.S. President Joe Biden has said that, despite tensions, his administration is looking to cooperate with Moscow on specific issues, including strategic arms reductions, the Iran nuclear talks, and countering ransomware and other cyberattacks.
