The UK's Financial Times reported that CIA Director Ratcliffe's visit to Moscow was aimed at playing a greater role in Russia-Ukraine ceasefire negotiations, and said the White House declined to comment. White House principal deputy press secretary Anna Kelly tweeted a denial, saying the White House did not refuse to comment; rather, the Financial Times published its story ahead of the deadline, basing the report on low-level anonymous sources, and not a single one of the claimed conversations ever took place.