The heads of the U.S. and Russian intelligence agencies spoke by phone and agreed to maintain regular contact in an effort to ease tensions between the two countries, Russian state media reported Wednesday.
CIA Director John Ratcliffe and Sergei Naryshkin, head of Russia’s Foreign Intelligence Service (SVR), spoke on Tuesday in what was the first such high-level exchange in several years, according to the state-run TASS news agency.
They “agreed on regular contact” between their agencies to “contribute to international stability and security, as well as reduce confrontation in relations between Moscow and Washington,” TASS reported.
The call came as Ukraine backed a proposed 30-day ceasefire and agreed to enter immediate negotiations with Russia during talks in Saudi Arabia.
The last reported contact between the CIA and SVR leadership was in November 2022, when Naryshkin met with then-CIA Director William Burns in Ankara.
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