CIA NOTE 26 June 2025 (U) Memo To: Director of the Central Intelligence Agency (U) From: Deputy Director of CIA for Analysis (U) Subject: Tradecraft Review of the 2016 Intelligence Community Assessment on Russian Election Interference (U) Reference: Intelligence Community Assessment (ICA), Russia’s Influence Campaign Targeting the 2016 US Presidential Election, 30 December 2016 (U) In May 2025, Director of the Central role in the US presidential election created Intelligence Agency (DCIA) John Ratcliffe tasked confusion about the IC's actual assessment. These CIA's Directorate of Analysis (DA) to conduct a contradictory messages prompted President lessons-learned review of the procedures and Obama on 6 December to direct then-Director of analytic tradecraft employed in the highest National Intelligence (DNI) James Clapper to classified version of the Intelligence Community ~ conduct a comprehensive review of all available Assessment (ICA) Russia’s Influence Campaign intelligence and provide the IC's best assessment Targeting the 2016 US Presidential Election, dated of Russian activities related to the election. 30 December 2016. The review focused particular attention on the ICA's most debated judgment— » (U) However, before work on the assessment that Russian President Vladimir Putin "aspired” to even began, media leaks suggesting that the IC help then-candidate Donald Trump win the had already reached definitive conclusions election. Drawing on CIA materials provided