FBI Director Kash Patel is reportedly preparing for a rare trip into the heart of Russia \u2014 one that could put America\u2019s top federal lawman across the table from the successor to the Soviet-era KGB.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Patel is expected to visit Moscow and St. Petersburg on Oct. 14 and 15, according to a U.S. official and another person familiar with the plans who spoke with Politico<\/a>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cHis host is likely to be the FSB, the Russian security service that is heir to the Soviet-era KGB,\u201d the U.S. official told the outlet.<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n\n\n\n The purpose of the trip has not been disclosed, and it remains unclear which Russian officials Patel intends to meet. There has also been no indication whether a face-to-face meeting with Russian President Vladimir Putin is under consideration.<\/p>\n\n\n\n The FBI and Justice Department did not respond to Politico\u2019s requests for comment, while the White House referred questions about the trip to the bureau.<\/p>\n\n\n\n The Kremlin did little to clear up the mystery Tuesday.<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cThese kinds of visits usually happen behind closed doors,\u201d Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov told reporters while declining to confirm or deny Patel\u2019s travel plans, according to The Moscow Times<\/a>.<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n\n\n\n The reported visit would carry particularly high stakes because Patel could be meeting with the same security service his bureau has publicly identified as an active threat to Americans.<\/p>\n\n\n\n In a June warning, the FBI and Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency said Russian intelligence actors were conducting an ongoing phishing campaign against high-value targets. The agencies said FSB officers and others working for Russian military services were targeting current and former U.S. government officials, military personnel, political figures and journalists.<\/p>\n\n\n\n The campaign allowed Russian operatives to take over messaging accounts and potentially access victims\u2019 private conversations, according to the FBI and CISA advisory<\/a>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n That creates a striking backdrop for Patel\u2019s expected talks: The FBI may need Russian cooperation on terrorism, cybercrime and other international investigations even while treating the expected host of the trip as a hostile intelligence organization.<\/p>\n\n\n\n If Patel makes the journey, he would become the first sitting FBI director known to visit Russia since Robert Mueller traveled to Moscow in 2013.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Mueller\u2019s unannounced trip came shortly after the Boston Marathon bombing and included discussions with Russian officials about the investigation and security cooperation ahead of the 2014 Winter Olympics in Sochi.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Patel\u2019s history makes the planned visit even more politically combustible.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Before taking over the FBI, Patel rose to prominence as a House Intelligence Committee aide investigating the origins and conduct of the bureau\u2019s Trump-Russia probe. He has repeatedly denounced the investigation into alleged collusion between Trump\u2019s 2016 campaign and Russia as the \u201cRussiagate hoax.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n The trip is also being planned as relations between Washington and Moscow remain strained over the war in Ukraine and lawmakers push for tougher economic penalties against Putin\u2019s government.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Trump administration envoys Steve Witkoff and Jared Kushner have made repeated attempts to negotiate an end to the war, but Russia has continued to demand Ukrainian territorial concessions that Kyiv has rejected, according to The Kyiv Independent<\/a>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n For now, the biggest question surrounding Patel\u2019s journey remains unanswered: What exactly does America\u2019s FBI director expect to accomplish behind closed doors with one of the country\u2019s most powerful adversaries?<\/p>\n\n\n\n\n
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