Did Trump Use a Catering Container to Leave Turkey Amid Iran Threat?

Trump was secretly flown from Turkey to Britain on another military aircraft after officials assessed a credible Iranian threat, says a media report.

By Pranjal Gupta

New Delhi, August 11: US President Donald Trump was secretly moved out of Turkey in a catering container and flown to Britain on a separate military aircraft during last month’s NATO summit, in an elaborate security operation prompted by what two senior US officials described as a credible threat from Iran, according to a report by The New York Times.

The operation was designed to make it appear that Trump had left Turkey aboard an older version of Air Force One, as had been publicly announced. Instead, according to the officials cited by the Times, Trump was taken from the aircraft through a catering container positioned on the opposite side of the plane and transferred to another military aircraft.

The unusual operation meant that journalists travelling with the presidential press pool, as well as some White House staff members, were unaware that Trump was not travelling with them. They effectively became unwitting decoys while the president was flown separately to Britain.

The episode offers a rare glimpse into the lengths to which presidential security measures can go when officials believe there is a serious threat to the US president.

What was the public told?

Trump had arrived in Turkey aboard a newer Boeing 747-8 aircraft donated by Qatar. At the time, officials had publicly said that he would leave Turkey on an older version of Air Force One on July 8.

Trump himself told reporters that the switch was being made for “old time’s sake”.

Donald Trump was secretly moved from Turkey to Britain amid an Iranian threat, with journalists unknowingly serving as decoys, says media reports.

He was seen boarding the older, powder-blue modified 747 through its left-side door, in full view of journalists and cameras. News organisations, including the New York Times, subsequently reported that he had travelled on that aircraft to Britain.

According to the latest report, however, that was not what happened.

The older aircraft reportedly served as a decoy. Trump was moved from it without the knowledge of the journalists who had boarded the plane. A C-32A, a military version of the Boeing 757, was then used to fly the president secretly to Britain, according to the Washington Post report cited by the Times.

Once in Britain, Trump was moved back to the older version of Air Force One. He then appeared in front of reporters and walked across the tarmac to the newer aircraft donated by Qatar, which he used for the journey to Washington.

Why was the operation necessary?

The operation appears to have been put together within hours after US officials assessed that a threat against Trump from Iran was credible, according to the two officials cited by the Times.

The security concern came against the backdrop of years of threats against Trump from Iran and the war he launched against the country.

There was also a separate concern about the Qatari aircraft. The Times had reported in July that the plane had not yet been fitted with all the defensive capabilities available on older versions of Air Force One.

That created a security problem: the president had arrived in the newer aircraft, but using it for his departure from Turkey could have exposed him to additional risk.

Rather than publicly explaining the security decision, officials appear to have chosen to

maintain the impression that Trump was travelling on the older aircraft.

Why is this unusual?

Presidential movements are normally accompanied by a designated group of journalists who travel with the president and provide the public with an independent account of his movements.

There have been occasions when presidents have been moved secretly for security reasons. During the chaos following the September 11, 2001 attacks, for example, President George W Bush travelled with a reduced press pool as he was moved between military facilities and eventually returned to Washington.

Former Secret Service agent Donald Mihalek, who worked on the protective details of Bush and Barack Obama, told the Times that decoy motorcades and flights have previously been used as protective measures.

The difference in this case is that the journalists travelling with Trump were apparently not aware that they were travelling without the president.

That raises a less common question about the balance between presidential security and public transparency. In an emergency or credible threat situation, security officials can have strong reasons for concealing a president's movements. But the incident also meant that the press pool, normally responsible for independently documenting the president's travel, was unknowingly reporting a false version of his whereabouts.

The earlier controversy over the Qatar aircraft

The latest report comes after an earlier dispute between the Trump administration and

journalists over security concerns surrounding the Qatari aircraft.

After the New York Times reported in July that the newer aircraft did not have all the defensive capabilities of older presidential planes, Trump reportedly reacted angrily to the leaks.

The Justice Department subsequently issued subpoenas seeking grand jury testimony from journalists who had worked on reports about the security concerns, as well as some of their family members.

The subpoenas were later withdrawn after a federal judge criticised the process followed by federal prosecutors.

Trump has also repeatedly objected to information coming from within his administration that conflicts with his public statements, particularly regarding the war with Iran.

The latest account adds another layer to that dispute: officials appear to have deliberately allowed the public and the press pool to believe that Trump was travelling on one aircraft while he was actually travelling on another.

The Times' report, based on accounts from two senior US officials, has not been publicly acknowledged in full by the administration. The precise nature of the alleged Iranian threat and the operational details surrounding the president's movement therefore remain unclear.