A US Air Force Boeing C-17 Globemaster III military transport aircraft landed at Moscow's Vnukovo Airport on the morning of August 25. According to the Flightradar24 service, the plane took off from Riga. The purpose of his arrival in Russia is unknown.
According to the flight history, on August 23, the same plane arrived in Riga from Camp Springs in Maryland. Joint Base Andrews is located there, where aircraft used to transport top US officials are based.
The C-17 Globemaster III is a heavy military transport aircraft of the United States Air Force, designed primarily for the rapid transport of troops, military equipment and cargo over long distances. Such aircraft can also be used to support government and diplomatic missions.
Russian Presidential Press Secretary Dmitry Peskov said that the Kremlin does not have information about the purpose of the American plane's arrival. According to him, the Russian side is not scheduled to meet with representatives of the US administration this week. The US also did not comment on the arrival of the plane.
It should be noted that in recent days, the possible arrival of American negotiators on Ukraine – special envoy Steve Witkoff, businessman Jared Kushner, son-in-law of US President Donald Trump – has been discussed in Moscow. On August 20, Peskov said that specific dates for their visit had not been agreed upon and “no specific days were reserved,” although he called Witkoff and Kushner “welcome guests” in Moscow.
The day before, the head of the Russian International Affairs Council, Ivan Timofeev, also said that the visit of Witkoff and Kushner was being postponed due to the lack of a sufficient agenda for negotiations. Thus, at the moment there is no confirmation that the arrival of the C-17 at Vnukovo is connected with the possible arrival of representatives of the Trump administration.
