During a covert trip to Moscow aimed at advancing an end to the war in Ukraine, CIA Director John Ratcliffe proposed a three-way summit among President Donald Trump, President Vladimir Putin and President Volodymyr Zelensky. He met on Tuesday with Sergey Naryshkin, head of Russia's foreign intelligence service, and FSB director Alexander Bortnikov, and U.S. officials later briefed Zelensky on the talks and the summit concept.

The Trump administration has raised the proposal before; Zelensky has supported it, while Putin has rejected it.

Axios also reported that Ratcliffe explored whether Russia's intelligence chiefs could help persuade Putin to resume U.S.-mediated negotiations with Ukraine, and that he came away viewing Bortnikov as a constructive player.

Ukrainian officials remain skeptical of Putin's intentions, with Zelensky's deputy chief of staff Pavlo Palisa saying Putin has ordered preparations for several offensive scenarios in northern Ukraine, including around Kyiv and Chernihiv.

Negotiations mediated by the Trump administration were paused in mid-February after the war with Iran started, though White House envoys Steve Witkoff and Jared Kushner have continued separate talks with Russian and Ukrainian negotiators.