# Americano: why did the CIA director fly to Moscow?

An episode of [Best of the Spectator](https://invisiblenetwork.ai/podcast/793236670), 1 Sep 2026, 17 min.

Audio: https://sphinx.acast.com/p/open/s/68358fb5e1abc4be6b0308eb/e/6a92d3cfae4f283336b34631/media.mp3?tk=eyJ0ayI6ImRlZmF1bHQiLCJhZHMiOnRydWUsInNwb25zIjp0cnVlLCJzdGF0dXMiOiJwdWJsaWMifQ==&sig=az5f8hjdLmARblWylFmBuPsaDo2IXQa1C4DVu1_DP1Y

Gus Carter is joined by Owen Matthews, the Spectator's Russia writer, to discuss John Ratcliffe's unannounced trip to Moscow, where the CIA director met Russia's foreign intelligence chief but not Putin. Owen runs through the possible reasons: Iran, a suspected Russian provocation against NATO, and the stalled peace process. They also discuss the sabotage campaign across Europe and the sanctions bill that could hurt Russia more than anything Trump has tried. Learn how to earn yield on gold, paid in gold, at Monetary-Metals.com/Americano Produced by Henry Lloyd. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

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