CIA Director John Ratcliffe – who visited Russia two weeks ago in his first trip to Moscow during his tenure – may be preparing to take a more prominent role in US-led talks with Russia and Ukraine regarding the war, now in its fifth year.The possible change would reduce the involvement of senior US envoys Steve Witkoff and Jared Kushner, while Ratcliffe would also continue to work with intelligence services in both countries, the Financial Times (FT) reported on Wednesday, Sept. 9, citing five sources familiar with the matter.JOIN US ON TELEGRAMFollow our coverage of the war on the @Kyivpost_official.“This entire story is totally fake news… None of these supposed conversations are happening,” the White House said in a statement, according to the FT.“Special envoy Witkoff and Jared Kushner continue to work incredibly hard toward a peace agreement, and the President trusts them fully to lead negotiations on behalf of the United States.”While the CIA declined the request to comment, sources told the FT that Trump had not yet made a final decision.No final decision has been madeAccording to the FT’s sources, the US administration has considered changing its negotiating team after previous efforts to broker an end to Russia’s war in late February.Witkoff could retain his broader special-envoy portfolio, including work on Middle East conflicts, while also remaining involved in diplomacy related to Ukraine – alongside Ratcliffe.The sources also described internal disagreement over how responsibility for negotiations would be divided.