US spy chief hold talks with Russian counterparts in Moscow

US CIA Director John Ratcliffe held talks with Russian intelligence officials during his visit to Moscow on Tuesday but did not meet President Vladimir Putin, the Kremlin said on Wednesday.

Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov told reporters that Putin had been briefed on the outcome of Ratcliffe's talks, which come as the war in Ukraine is escalating and as efforts to reach a lasting peace deal between the US and Iran have stalled.

Peskov declined to disclose what had been discussed or to provide any further details however.

"All I can tell you is that there have been contacts via the security services. I can tell you that there have been no meetings with the Russian president. Naturally, President Putin is kept informed of everything without delay," said Peskov.

Asked if visits by such senior US officials could help improve the dire state of US-Russia relations, Peskov said that contacts between the two countries' intelligence agencies were a positive thing.

"These contacts often continue even during the most difficult periods in bilateral relations. Our president, incidentally, has spoken about this. However, it is still too early to say to what extent this will, overall, help to steer our bilateral relations out of the profound crisis in which they currently find themselves," he said.