CIA Director William Burns has traveled to Turkey to deliver a message to Vladimir Putin’s foreign spy chief about the consequences if Russia uses nuclear weapons, a White House spokesman said.

This is the first known high-level contact between the US and Russian administrations since Putin made the decision to invade Ukraine on February 24. Burns is in Ankara to meet with Sergei Naryshkin, the head of the SVR, Russia’s Foreign Intelligence Service.

“This is not about carrying out negotiations of any kind and they are not going to discuss any kind of agreement on the war in Ukraine,” a US spokesman told the agency. Reuters on condition of anonymity.

“It will send a message to Russia about the consequences of the use of nuclear weapons and the risks of an escalation of tension for strategic stability,” the spokesman explained. “And he will also talk about the cases of American citizens who are wrongfully detained.”

Burns was the US ambassador to Russia in late 2021. He was appointed by Biden to warn Putin about the sensitive issue of troop buildup around Ukraine. Warnings that, as could be seen, had no effect on the Russian president.

From Washington they assure that they have “previously informed Ukraine about this trip and that they will abide by the fundamental maxim that they are applying in this conflict: do not discuss anything about Ukraine if Ukraine is not there.”

In the more than nine months that the war has lasted, Putin has repeatedly repeated that he will defend his territory with all the means at his disposal and that this even means the use of nuclear weapons. In addition, the head of the Kremlin also maintains that the West does nothing but blackmail Russia with the nuclear threat.

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