US President Donald Trump's administration has summoned a number of New York Times journalists to appear before a federal grand jury after they published press reports revealing security concerns and defensive gaps related to the new US presidential plane "Air Force One".
Reports that the presidential plane lacked some advanced defense systems sparked a new and violent confrontation between the White House and the newspaper, after the administration issued subpoenas against the journalists who produced the news materials, in a move that the newspaper's management saw as a direct attempt to intimidate the media and undermine press freedom guaranteed by the U.S. Constitution.
The subpoenas, which order journalists to appear before a federal grand jury next Wednesday, were delivered to them last Friday, with federal agents in some cases delivering them directly to the journalists' homes.
The memos directly targeted the press team that prepared the report on Trump's surprise decision to use the old presidential jet on Wednesday, and the other report published the next day detailing security concerns related to the new gifted plane.
Reports reveal defence concerns over Qatari plane
The reports published by the newspaper, citing informed officials, indicated that the new Boeing 747-8 aircraft, donated by the State of Qatar, lacks some vital security features, including advanced anti-ballistic and thermal missile technological capabilities.
Security experts have expressed deep concern over the use of the unfinished plane on the president's foreign flights, stressing that it was the concerns of the US Secret Service that prompted the sudden decision to leave Turkish territory last Wednesday on the old presidential plane instead of the new plane.
The White House defended the security of the presidential jet, with communications director Stephen Cheung confirming, in an official statement, that the new Air Force One aircraft is highly advanced and equipped with high-level security protocols to ensure the safety of the president and his entourage.
Cheung pointed out that there are many enemies of the United States who target the president's person, stressing that the administration is using all available legal and security tools to deal with those threats and prevent the leak of sensitive data.
A statement issued by the US Air Force on June 19 also explained that the joint team made some technical trade-offs related to the lesser-used mission capabilities to support the aircraft in the future, without accepting any security or safety risk.
Political criticism, doubts about military readiness
Former U.S. Secretary of the Air Force Frank Kendall was surprised by the use of the aircraft outside the United States, noting that time did not allow for all the usual military adjustments, so some security, communications and support components are still incomplete.
Former Assistant Secretary of the Air Force Andrew B. Hunter said it would take more than a year to re-equip an aircraft of this size into a flying headquarters. Democratic Senator Christopher Murphy, along with 12 other senators, expressed skepticism about Trump's decisions, accusing him of prioritizing luxury and personal comfort over U.S. national security standards.
The New York Times revealed that prior to the publication of the latest report, a senior FBI official contacted the editorial board to request that the publication be postponed for national security reasons without providing clarification, which the newspaper rejected as outright intimidation aimed at withholding the facts from the American public.
The lawsuit follows the Pentagon's acceptance of the plane that Qatar gifted to Trump, which is estimated to be worth about $400 million.
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