CIA Director William Burns was the crisis man from the start. He warned the West of the danger of the invasion (and it was not listened to), went to Moscow to warn the Kremlin of the dangers and to make clear what he knew about the movements.
Then, with his men, he guaranteed life support to the resistance. Now Burns is back on the scene.
The number one of the American intelligence agency went on a secret mission to Kiev in early October that was revealed by the American media recently.
The visit accompanied a very delicate phase. The Ukrainians try to penetrate the Kherson region, while the invaders continue to destroy the infrastructure with missiles and drones.
In the western field, there is no shortage of questions about what are the limits of a serious commitment.
Here, Burns' direct contacts with Volodymyr Zelensky and other leaders also have a "political" value.
They serve to establish guidelines and address issues that go beyond operational aspects. There are those who speculate that it has something to do with the dreaded nuclear front.
US intelligence reiterates that there are no signs of possible use of tactical atomic weapons by Russia, it tries to separate propaganda flights from concrete dangers.
However, as a professional, he must think through every scenario. Moscow's diplomats abroad repeatedly deny that there is a goal to unleash "Armageddon", a position reaffirmed by Putin himself in his latest speech.
Observers (pessimists) however remember: The new Tsar decided to attack Ukraine informing only a small circle of hierarchs. A military action that started badly and continued worse, as evidence shows.