Donald Trump has confirmed reports he secretly swapped planes as he left a Nato summit in Turkey earlier this year.
Following a Nato summit in Ankara last month, the United States President was transferred from Air Force One to a military plane via a catering truck in an extraordinary deception prompted by an Iranian assassination threat.
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Now, Mr Trump has confirmed the story, adding he was following the direction of the Secret Service, the agency that protects the head of state, as US intelligence had information on a person near the summit who had been seen with a shoulder-fired missile.
Some media commentators questioned whether the operation left the President’s aides and journalists travelling with him at risk aboard the plane presumed to be carrying the president.
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He told reporters: “I think actually the plane that I flew on was at greater risk.
“I think it was at greater risk because that would be the plane I think that they would be more likely to go for.”
When asked about the bait and switch, Mr Trump said: “Well, it’s only up to Secret Service. I just follow what they’d like to do, so I go by Secret Service and the military.
“I guess there was a threat out there. I didn’t really ask too much about it. I get a lot of threats.”
The White House said at the time the President was flying aboard Air Force One from Turkey to Britain.
However, moments after Mr Trump boarded the plane, he left it in secret via the catering truck and boarded another aircraft for the flight to Britain, the Washington Post said on Monday, quoting unnamed sources.
Mr Trump had taken a newly renovated Qatari-donated jet to Ankara for the Nato summit.
However, he unexpectedly announced he would use an older Air Force One when departing the country, a move that prompted questions about the newer plane’s security.
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The trip to Nato was the first international travel for the new plane, whose speedy upgrades triggered questions over its cost and security, and took place as hostilities escalated with Iran, which borders Turkey.
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