WILLIAM BURNS

The U.S. intelligence community said Wednesday it is unlikely that the physical afflictions called "Havana Syndrome" are unlikely to be caused by foreign actors.

CIA director William Burns said he promised Russia's spy chief Sergei Naryshkin severe consequences from the United States if Moscow uses nuclear weapons on the Ukrainian battlefield.

Taiwan and China split in 1949 after a civil war that ended with the Communist Party in control of the mainland. The self-governing island acts like a sovereign nation yet is not recognized by the United Nations or any major country. In 1979, President Jimmy Carter formally recognized the government in Beijing and cut nation-to-nation ties with Taiwan. President Joe Biden has said that American forces would defend Taiwan if China tries to invade. “I think, as they’ve looked at Putin’s experience in Ukraine, that’s probably reinforced some of those doubts,” Burns said.

The CIA director says U.S. intelligence shows that China’s President Xi Jinping has instructed his country’s military to “be ready by 2027” to invade Taiwan.

U.S. intelligence shows that China's President Xi Jinping has instructed his country's military to “be ready by 2027" to invade Taiwan though he may be currently harboring doubts about his ability to do so given Russia's experience in its war with Ukraine, CIA Director William Burns said. Burns, in a television interview that aired Sunday, stressed that the United States must take “very seriously” Xi's desire to ultimately control Taiwan even if military conflict is not inevitable. “We do know, as has been made public, that President Xi has instructed the PLA, the Chinese military leadership, to be ready by 2027 to invade Taiwan, but that doesn’t mean that he’s decided to invade in 2027 or any other year as well,” Burns told CBS' “Face the Nation.”

— (AP) — As the war in Ukraine enters its second year, CIA Director William Burns said Sunday that Russian President Vladimir Putin is being "too confident" in his military's ability to grind Ukraine into submission. That conversation, in which Burns warned of the consequences if Russia were to deploy a nuclear weapon in Ukraine, was “pretty dispiriting,” Burns said. Burns said he judged Putin as “quite determined” to continue prosecuting the war, despite the casualties, tactical shortcomings and economic and reputational damage to Russia. “I think Putin is, right now, entirely too confident of his ability ... to wear down Ukraine,” Burns told CBS' “Face the Nation” in an interview that aired Sunday. But Sen. Dan Sullivan, R-Alaska, said the White House has been slow in providing what Ukraine seeks, including jets.

CIA Director William Burns says Russian President Vladimir Putin is being “too confident” in his military’s ability to grind Ukraine into submission.

China says Alexander Lukashenko, the president of Belarus and a close ally of the Russian leader, will visit Beijing this week.

The U.S. is so far empty-handed in dealing with Israel's radical government and dysfunctional Palestinian leadership.

"We know as a matter of intelligence that he's instructed the People's Liberation Army to be ready by 2027 to conduct a successful invasion," Burns also said.

North African and Sudanese officials say the United States is ratcheting up pressure on Middle East allies and power brokers in chaos-stricken Libya and Sudan to expel a Russian private military contractor

North African and Sudanese officials say the United States is increasing pressure on Middle East allies and power brokers in chaos-stricken Libya and Sudan to expel a Russian private military contractor.

The CIA chief said that U.S. intelligence shows that Russian President Vladimir Putin is not serious about peace talks.

WASHINGTON — (AP) — CIA Director William Burns visited Kyiv last week to meet with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy, a U.S. official said Thursday, in the latest example of high-level contacts between the U.S. and Ukraine. The official, who spoke on condition of anonymity to discuss the director's classified schedule, said Burns emphasized Washington's "continued support for Ukraine" in the war. The CIA director has briefed Zelenskyy repeatedly before and since Russia launched its invasion of Ukraine last February, passing on U.S. intelligence findings about Moscow's war plans and intentions. Washington is about to send another $2.5 billion in aid to Ukraine, including for the first time Stryker armored vehicles. The CIA director told PBS NewsHour last month that agency analysts predicted “a reduced tempo and fighting between the two militaries as winter sets in."

CIA Director William Burns visited Kyiv last week to meet with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy.

Libyan officials say the CIA chief has met with one of the country’s rival prime ministers in a rare visit by a senior U.S. official to the war-torn country, currently split between two rival administrations

WASHINGTON — (AP) — TikTok would be banned from most U.S. government devices under a government spending bill Congress unveiled early Tuesday, the latest push by American lawmakers against the Chinese-owned social media app. TikTok is consumed by two-thirds of American teens and has become the second-most popular domain in the world. House Speaker Nancy Pelosi, D-Calif., was pushing to include the TikTok provision in the big year-end bill, her office said. Sen. Josh Hawley, a Missouri Republican who authored a version of the TikTok bill that passed the Senate last week, called the government device ban “the first major strike against Big Tech enacted into law." Rep. Raja Krishnamoorthi, D-Ill., has co-sponsored legislation to prohibit TikTok from operating in the U.S. altogether.

WASHINGTON — (AP) — TikTok would be banned from most U.S. government devices under a government spending bill Congress unveiled early Tuesday, the latest push by American lawmakers against the Chinese-owned social media app. The requirements would apply to the executive branch — with exemptions for national security, law enforcement and research purposes — and don't appear to cover Congress, where a handful of lawmakers maintain TikTok accounts. TikTok is consumed by two-thirds of American teens and has become the second-most popular domain in the world. House Speaker Nancy Pelosi, D-Calif., was pushing to include the TikTok provision in the big year-end bill, her office said. Sen. Josh Hawley, a Missouri Republican who authored a version of the TikTok bill that passed the Senate last week, called the government device ban “the first major strike against Big Tech enacted into law."

TikTok would be banned from most U.S. government devices under a government spending bill Congress unveiled early Tuesday.

PRZEWODOW, Poland — (AP) — Poland said Wednesday that a Russian-made missile fell in the country’s east, killing two people, though U.S. President Joe Biden said it was “unlikely” it was fired from Russia. That assessment and Biden’s comments at the Group of 20 summit in Indonesia contradict information earlier Tuesday from a senior U.S. intelligence official who told the AP that Russian missiles crossed into Poland. “This is a difficult situation.”Ukraine still maintains stocks of former Soviet and Russian-made weaponry, including the S-300 air-defense missile system. Poland and NATO used language that suggested they were not treating the missile blast as an intentional Russian attack, at least for now. CIA Director William Burns was in Kyiv on Tuesday during the barrage of Russian missiles that struck dozens of targets in the country.

WARSAW, Poland — (AP) — Poland said Wednesday that a Russian-made missile fell in the country’s east, killing two people, though U.S. President Joe Biden said it was “unlikely” it was fired from Russia. President Andrzej Duda was more cautious, saying that it was “most probably” Russian-made but that its origins were still being verified. “This is a difficult situation.”Ukraine still maintains stocks of former Soviet and Russian-made weaponry, including the S-300 air-defense missile system. European Commission President Ursula von Der Leyen said participants discussed the blast in Poland and expressed their continued solidarity with Ukraine. Poland and NATO used language that suggested they were not treating the missile blast as an intentional Russian attack, at least for now.

NATO's chief and the president of Poland say there are no indications that a missile that fell on Polish farmland and killed two people was a deliberate attack.

Poland says a Russian-made missile fell in the country’s east, killing two people.

President Biden said that he had an “open and candid conversation” with Chinese President Xi Jinping on Monday. Biden and Xi greeted each other with a handshake in front of reporters ahead of their meeting. On Russia's invasion of Ukraine, both leaders repeated their agreement that "a nuclear war should never be fought." This comes after the news that CIA Director William Burns would be meeting his Russian counterpart in Turkey on Monday to warn against the potential use of nuclear weapons in Ukraine. "He is conveying a message on the consequences of the use of nuclear weapons by Russia, and the risks of escalation to strategic stability," a White House spokeswoman said.

CIA Director Bill Burns has met with his Russian intelligence counterpart to warn of consequences if Russia were to deploy a nuclear weapon in Ukraine.

How Russia’s reckless czar is making his worst fears come true

Trying to figure out what Russian President Vladimir Putin is thinking is tough for Kremlin watchers who want to know whether he is bluffing with his nuclear threats.

The CIA director spoke with CBS News about Putin's options on the battlefield and how the war is affecting Russia's relationship with China.

At the Central Intelligence Agency's headquarters in Langley, Virginia, a newly-redesigned museum – accessible only to authorized persons – chronicles the successes, failures and sacrifices of intelligence operatives through the years.

The al-Zawahiri model home is the rare artifact that had been used by intelligence officers just weeks beforehand.

Now, the contents of the box — a model depicting a white-walled home with at least five stories and three partially obscured balconies — are on display at the CIA Museum inside the agency's Virginia headquarters. The museum is closed to the public and access is generally limited to the agency's employees and guests. The al-Zawahri model home is the rare artifact that had been used by intelligence officers just weeks beforehand. On display near the model of al-Zawahri's home are seven stars honoring the CIA employees slain at Khost. But CIA employees post about some of the museum’s roughly 600 exhibits on social media.

The CIA has revealed the scale model of the safe house where it found and killed al-Qaida leader Ayman al-Zawahri in Afghanistan.

CIA Director William Burns said “declining powers,” like Russia, are “as disruptive as rising ones,” warning that China is a “central geopolitical challenge” for the U.S.

The seeds of the U.S. counterterrorism operation that killed al-Qaida's leader were planted over many months.

Speaking to CNN, Michigan Rep. Elissa Slotkin said that the estimate was revealed during a classified briefing with officials from the Biden administration. That roughly correlates to the number of casualties estimated by CIA Director William Burns on July 20. The intelligence chief went on to say that Ukrainian soldiers had “suffered as well” but “probably a little less than” enemy forces. More recently, Ukrainian Volodymyr Zelensky’s senior advisor said that military casualties were between 100 and 200 per day. Keeping relatively quiet on the number of casualties its military has suffered, Russia announced on March 25 that it had counted 1,351 deaths.

Burns' comments followed a rare visit by Putin this week to Tehran, where he met with Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei and President Ebrahim Raisi, as well as Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan.

William Burns' comment is a blow to Putin's critics who believed the Russian leader was ill.

China is the foremost challenge for U.S. national security agencies, a so-called “hard target” that is America’s chief rival for global dominance.

U.S. President Joe Biden and Brazilian President Jair Bolsonaro lead the two largest democracies in the Western Hemisphere, but they haven't met since Biden took office last year.

President Joe Biden is leaning towards making a visit to Saudi Arabia — a trip that would likely bring him face-to-face with the Saudi crown prince he once shunned as a killer.

The national reckoning over racial inequality sparked by George Floyd’s murder two years ago has gone on behind closed doors inside America’s intelligence agencies.

Vice President Kamala Harris has led a high-powered American delegation to the United Arab Emirates to pay respects to the federation’s late ruler and meet with the newly ascended president.

Russian President Vladimir Putin Putin's "frame of mind" can't accept defeat in Ukraine, CIA director William Burns said.

But there's no indication the Russian president is preparing for imminent use of nuclear weapons, William Burns said.

Many people in the U.S. continue to question whether President Joe Biden is showing enough strength in response to Russia’s war against Ukraine, even as most approve of steps the U.S. is already taking and few want U.S. troops to get involved in the conflict.

Russia’s bombardment of Ukrainian cities destroyed a community kitchen in Kharkiv.

"None of us can take lightly the threat posed by a potential resort to tactical nuclear weapons or low-yield nuclear weapons," the CIA chief warned.

As the Russia-Ukraine war entered its eighth week, Russia confirmed that its flagship vessel in the Black Sea sank — with Ukrainians claiming their anti-ship missile is to blame — while CIA Director William Burns warned the U.S. can’t “take lightly” the possibility that Russia would use nuclear weapons.

He called Putin an "apostle of payback" whose appetite for risk has grown as his circle of trusted advisers has shrunk over the years.

He called Putin an "apostle of payback" whose appetite for risk has grown as his circle of trusted advisers has shrunk over the years.

Secret intelligence is playing an unusually public role in the war in Ukraine.

CIA Director COVID FILE - Central Intelligence Agency Director William Burns, center, testifies on Capitol Hill in Washington, March 8, 2022, during a House Permanent Select Committee on Intelligence hearing on worldwide threats. He is flanked by Director of National Intelligence Avril Haines, left, and Defense Intelligence Agency Director Lt. Gen. Scott Berrier, right. Burns has tested positive for COVID-19, according to an agency statement Thursday, March 31. (AP Photo/Susan Walsh, File) (Susan Walsh)WASHINGTON — (AP) — CIA Director William Burns has tested positive for COVID-19, according to an agency statement Thursday. Biden is not known to have tested positive for the virus since the pandemic began.

Burns, who is fully vaccinated and boosted against Covid-19, last met with President Joe Biden on Wednesday morning.

CIA Director William Burns has tested positive for COVID-19.

As she pressed the Clinton administration into action against Serbian President Slobodan Milosevic over war crimes in the Balkans, Madeleine Albright would harken back to her own childhood as a refugee from Czechoslovakia who fled the Nazis in war-torn Europe.

The request included military aid and equipment, according to the officials.

Officials in recent days have publicly said they're worried the Russian president will escalate the conflict to try to break Ukraine's resistance. Intelligence officials over two days of testimony before Congress last week openly voiced concerns about what Putin might do. Burns told lawmakers that he believed Putin was "stewing in a combustible combination of grievance and ambition for many years." Putin had expected to seize Kyiv in two days, Burns said. Avril Haines, President Joe Biden's director of national intelligence, said Putin “perceives this as a war he cannot afford to lose.

Russian President Vladimir Putin appears to U.S. intelligence as angry and frustrated more than two weeks into a war he thought he would dominate in two days.

A U.S. official says Russia has asked China for military equipment to use in its invasion of Ukraine.

Russia Ukraine War Bio Lab Claims In an image taken from video, Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesperson Zhao Lijian speaks during a media briefing Thursday, March 10, 2022, in Beijing. China's Foreign Ministry has helped fuel the fire this week, repeating the Russian claim several times and calling for an investigation. Russia also supports the Assad government in Syria, which has used chemical weapons against its people in a decade-long civil war. Moscow initially claimed that its invading forces had found evidence of hasty attempts to conceal biological weapons research in Ukraine. It is not the first time Russia has spread disinformation about American biological weapons research.

As Russia intensifies its assault on Ukraine, it is getting a helping hand from China in spreading inflammatory and unsubstantiated claims that the U.S. is financing biological weapons labs in Ukraine.

As Western leaders congratulate themselves for their speedy and severe responses to Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, they’re also scratching their heads with uncertainty about what their actions will accomplish.

Two weeks into its war in Ukraine, Russia has achieved less and struggled more than anticipated at the outset of the biggest land conflict in Europe since World War II.

U.S. intelligence leaders on Tuesday floated the idea that Vladimir Putin may seek an exit from Ukraine if his war effort continues to stall, but that escalation of the conflict is likely to happen before the Russian president considers ending his attacks.

An "aggrieved" Putin likely "perceives this as a war he cannot afford to lose," said director of national intelligence Avril Haines.

An "aggrieved" Putin likely "perceives this as a war he cannot afford to lose," said director of national intelligence Avril Haines.

CIA Director William Burns says Russia's invasion of Ukraine has fallen far short of Vladimir Putin's expectations. Burns now predicts weeks of 'ugly fighting' for control of Ukraine's cities.

Putin did not expect the level of Ukrainian resistance to his invasion, nor the sanctions imposed by countries around the world, lawmakers are told.

Top U.S. intelligence officials believe Russia underestimated the strength of Ukraine’s resistance before launching an invasion that has likely caused thousands of Russian casualties.

U.S. intel agencies believe Russia doesn't want to engage directly with the U.S. military, says a worldwide threats analysis prepped before the Ukraine invasion.

Investigators believe a microwave weapon could be behind the cases, but several questions remain unanswered.

A panel of intelligence experts hasn’t identified a single culprit for apparent brain injuries reported by U.S. personnel that have been linked to so-called “Havana syndrome.

U_S_ officials say the CIA believes it's unlikely that Russia or another foreign adversary is using microwaves or other forms of directed energy to attack hundreds of American diplomats and intelligence officers who attribute their brain injuries and other symptoms to what's come to be known as “Havana syndrome.”.

Two dozen cases remain "unresolved" and will be the focus of "active and intense investigation," a senior CIA official said.

President Joe Biden says he thinks Russia will invade Ukraine and is warning President Vladimir Putin that his country would pay a “dear price” in lives lost and a possible cutoff from the global banking system if it does.

The buildup of Russian troops near Ukraine has left U.S. officials perplexed.

The Biden administration is stepping up pressure on Russia over a buildup of troops along its frontier with Ukraine.

Virus Oubreak Intelligence Vaccines FILE - Director of National Intelligence Avril Haines, left, next to CIA Director William Burns, testifies at a House Intelligence committee hearing on diversity and equity in the intelligence community on Oct. 27, 2021, on Capitol Hill in Washington. Thousands of intelligence officers could soon face dismissal for failing to comply with the U.S. government's vaccine mandate, leading to concerns from Republican lawmakers about potentially hurting agencies considered critical to national security. Haines says she doesn't anticipate the mandate affecting the mission of national security agencies. Citing information that he said had been provided to the House Intelligence Committee but not released publicly, Stewart said several intelligence agencies had at least 20% of their workforce unvaccinated as of late October. The Office of the Director of National Intelligence declined several requests to provide figures for the intelligence community.

Havana Syndrome FILE - Secretary of State Antony Blinken participates in a Blue Dot Network Discussion at the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development's Ministerial Council Meeting, Oct. 5, 2021, in Paris. Secretary of State Antony Blinken appointed a high-ranking deputy, Jonathan Moore, to coordinate the department’s task force on the cases. Blinken also appointed retired ambassador Margaret Uyehara to lead efforts to directly support care for State Department employees. The cases are known as “Havana Syndrome” dating to a series of reported brain injuries in 2016 at the U.S. Embassy in Cuba. The State Department said Friday that Deputy Secretary Brian McKeon had met with diplomats in Vienna to discuss possible cases reported this year in Austria.

The State Department has named a new coordinator for its investigation into cases of so-called Havana Syndrome.

Thousands of intelligence officers could soon face dismissal for failing to comply with the U.S. government's vaccine mandate, leading to concerns from Republican lawmakers about potentially hurting agencies considered critical to national security. Haines says she doesn't anticipate the mandate affecting the mission of national security agencies. The Office of the Director of National Intelligence declined several requests to provide figures for the intelligence community. “My question is what’s the impact on national security if we do that?” Stewart said. House Intelligence Committee Democrats say they’re confident that the vaccination mandate will not cause a problem for the intelligence community.

Thousands of intelligence officers could soon face dismissal for failing to comply with the U.S. government’s vaccine mandate, leading to concerns from Republican lawmakers about potentially hurting agencies considered critical to national security.

William Burns met with the official at President Biden's request.

MOSCOW — (AP) — A top Russian security official met the visiting chief of the Central Intelligence Agency on Tuesday, a rare encounter amid tensions between Moscow and Washington. Nikolai Patrushev, the powerful secretary of the Kremlin's Security Council, met CIA Director William Burns in Moscow to discuss U.S.-Russian relations, Patrushev's office said in a statement without providing any details. U.S. President Joe Biden and Russian President Vladimir Putin held a June summit in Geneva in an attempt to make relations between their nations more stable and predictable. Speaking last month, Putin described relations with Washington as “quite constructive” and said he personally has developed “working, stable relations” with Biden. The Russian leader voiced hope that mutual interests would eventually help normalize U.S.-Russia ties.

For nine months under President Joe Biden, the U.S. has pursued a diplomatic strategy that could be characterized as about China, without China.

The CIA says it will create a top-level working group on China as part of a broad U.S. government effort focused on countering Beijing’s influence.

In announcing the changes, the CIA director referred to "increasingly adversarial Chinese government" as the "most important geopolitical threat we face in the 21st century."

The Taliban’s takeover of Kabul has deepened the mutual distrust between the U.S. and Pakistan, two putative allies who have tangled over Afghanistan.

A U.S. intelligence officer suffered symptoms linked to a series of directed-energy attacks known as “Havana syndrome” while traveling with Central Intelligence Agency Director William Burns in India earlier this month.

Sharply divided leaders of the Group of Seven industrialized democracies have clashed over U.S. President Joe Biden’s insistence on withdrawing from Afghanistan by August 31 in the face of the Taliban takeover.

An administration official says President Joe Biden has decided to stick with his Aug. 31 deadline for completing a U.S.-led evacuation of Americans and at-risk Afghans from the Kabul airport and for withdrawing the remaining U.S. forces.

The two-decade war in Afghanistan has given U.S. spies a perch for keeping tabs on terrorist groups that might once again use the beleaguered nation to plan attacks against the U.S. homeland.

The Biden administration faces increasing pressure to respond to a sharply growing number of reported injuries suffered by diplomats, intelligence officers and military personnel that some suspect are caused by devices that emit waves of energy that disrupt brain function.

A new U.S. intelligence assessment says any gains in women’s rights in Afghanistan made in the last two decades will be at risk after the U.S. withdraws later this year.

A senior Afghan politician and a well-placed public figure say CIA Director William Burns made a recent unannounced visit to the Afghan capital of Kabul.

President Joe Biden this past week found himself in search of a foreign policy sweet spot: somewhere between pulling a screeching U-turn on four years of Trumpism and cautiously approaching the world as it is.

At its start, America’s war in Afghanistan was about retribution for 9/11.

At its start, America’s war in Afghanistan was about retribution for 9/11.

A U_S_ intelligence community report says the effects of the coronavirus pandemic are expected to contribute over the next year to “humanitarian and economic crises, political unrest, and geopolitical competition."

(AP Photo/Patrick Semansky)WASHINGTON – President Joe Biden’s Cabinet is nearly complete with the confirmation of Labor Secretary Marty Walsh. A panel will also vote on advancing the nomination of Polly Ellen Trottenberg to be deputy secretary of transportation. And even as the Biden administration moves through picking nominees, there's no guarantee they'll all receive a smooth confirmation. And some of the deputies have become political footballs for Republicans looking to score concessions from the Biden administration. Cruz continues to hold up Biden’s nominee for deputy secretary of state, Wendy Sherman, until sanctions are imposed.