Former US President Donald Trump has disclosed details of a covert operation during his recent visit to Turkey, where he was hidden inside a catering container truck to evade a credible threat from Iran.
According to Trump, the Secret Service and military officials arranged for him to board a separate aircraft concealed within the container, while Air Force One departed Ankara airport carrying his staff and journalists as a decoy.
"I think actually the plane that I flew on was at greater risk," Trump said, explaining that the decoy flight was less likely to be targeted than the aircraft he was on. He emphasized his compliance with security personnel, stating, "I just have to do what they say."
The operation was complicated by the fact that the plane Trump initially arrived in Turkey on was a luxury jet gifted by Qatar, which lacked standard missile detection and countermeasure systems present on older presidential aircraft. Consequently, Trump flew from Turkey to the United Kingdom on a smaller government plane before rejoining the Qatari aircraft there.
Trump's revelation sparked calls for transparency from political leaders. Senate Democratic Leader Chuck Schumer demanded an immediate briefing from the administration on the Iranian threats, the extraordinary security measures taken, and any potential risks to US personnel and national security.
Schumer criticized the administration for withholding information from Congress, saying, "It is unacceptable that Congress was kept in the dark and instead learned about this serious threat through press reports."
