Rodney Mims Cook Jr., the fine-arts chief personally selected by President Donald Trump to chair the President's Committee on the Arts and the Humanities, traveled to Russia once again for the St. Petersburg International Economic Forum, Vladimir Putin's annual alternative to the Davos economic forum — and, according to the Financial Times, the trip's undisclosed purpose went well beyond touting the president's ballroom: Cook was carrying out a diplomatic mission intended to persuade Putin to end the war against Ukraine. Cook is an Atlanta-based classical architect who founded the National Monuments Foundation, and his committee post is an advisory cultural role that carries no formal diplomatic mandate.

The Daily Beast had reported that Cook drew criticism simply for attending the forum, but the Financial Times revealed that the real purpose of the visit was a mission undertaken on behalf of the president — one that escaped the attention of Secretary of State Marco Rubio, who told reporters at the time that he was "not aware" a U.S. delegation was even present at the event, much less that a covert diplomatic effort was underway.

Rubio currently holds two positions — Secretary of State and interim National Security Advisor — and in either capacity he would ordinarily have been part of discussions about such a mission. Through 2025, the administration's official push to end the war ran through precisely those channels: Rubio and special envoy Steve Witkoff met Russian officials in Saudi Arabia, and Moscow and Kyiv sent delegations to direct talks hosted in Istanbul.

When the Financial Times reached out to Cook, he refused to answer any questions about the specific job Trump had tasked him with, or about whether he would be returning to Russia soon.

"There are many requests," Cook said. "We're working on that now."

It remains unclear whether the mission came as a direct request from the president, but Cook was sent with a specific message: "Good hello from your friend, President Trump. We have a lot of ideas to talk about between our two capital cities in the next week." According to the report, he was issued a diplomatic passport and received official briefings ahead of the trip.

Much of Cook's time in Russia centered on his affection for Russian culture and architecture. He even delivered a "lengthy presentation" on his second home in Atlanta, which was designed using the aesthetic typically seen in Russian Orthodox churches.

The revelation that Cook was on hand for a "diplomacy-by-flattery" campaign comes 17 months after Trump claimed he would be able to end the war between Ukraine and Russia on "Day One" — going so far as to say he could likely stop the war before he was sworn in. About six months into his administration, with the war still unresolved, Trump characterized the pledge as "an exaggeration," NBC News reported.

The atypical envoy concept never worked. While Cook was in Russia, Ukraine launched a drone strike within the Russian border, hitting the oil refinery on the Neva River. Cook said the attack came too close for him to feel safe.