Washington – President Trump defended National Security Minister Mike Waltz on Tuesday Use of the encrypted messenger app After a journalist mistakenly joined a group chat who detailed highly sensitive plans to attack Huthi goals at Yemen.
Trump told the journalists of the White House that the information discussed in the 18 -member group chat, which included high -ranking officials such as Vice President JD Vance and Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth, did not qualify and said that Waltz is a “very good man” who will “continue to do a good job.”
“I don’t think he has to apologize. I think he is doing his best,” said Waltz President. “It is a equipment and technology that are not perfect and probably will not use it again, at least not in the very close future.”
The use of the application of the Trump administration to detail the plans to bomb Highi’s goals on March 15 was revealed on Monday by Jeffrey Goldberg, the chief editor of the Atlantic Magazine, who wrote in a piece Which was added to a chat on a sign that shared the Waltz name earlier this month.
Several days later an account called “Pete Hegseth” raised plans Strikes in Yemen, Including information on “Package of weapons, goals and synchronization” shortly before the attack took place, he wrote Goldberg.
Among those included in the chat were accounts that seemed to belong to the Secretary of State Marco Rubio, director of National Intelligence Tlosi Gabbard, director of the CIA, John Ratcliffe, Treasury Secretary, Scott Bessent and Ukraine and sent from the Middle East Steve Witkoff, according to Goldberg’s account. Witkoff was in Moscow When added to the group’s chat, an Open source flight information and reports of Russian reports were found.
Hegseth denied that war plans were discussed, but the National Security Council said on Monday in a statement to CBS News that the Message thread detailed by Goldberg “seems to be authentic.”
The breach caused immediate condemnation From the Trump administration of the Democrats of Congress and asked questions about the use of the signal about the Government or personal devices, as well as the maximum North -Americans shared classified information.
In a letter sent to Mr. Trump Tuesday, Hakem Jakem Jeffries said, “Hegseth should be fired immediately.”
“The so -called Secretary of Defense recklessly and accidentally disclosed the highly sensitive war plans, including the calendar of a pending attack, the possible strike goals and the weapons to be used, giving a non -classified national security group chat, which inexplicably included a journalist,” said Jeffries. “His behavior moves consciousness, risked north -American life and probably violated law.”
Mr. Trump, meanwhile, told journalists that his administration would limit the use of the signal in the future, although he acknowledged that “many people” throughout the federal government is based on the application.
“I don’t think it’s something we expect to use again,” he said. “We may be forced to use it. Maybe we are in a situation where you need speed in contrast to serious security and can be forced to use it. I think we will not use much.”
The President questioned whether the application has vulnerabilities that allow other users to hack in conversations.
“I think Michael, I asked you to study this immediately and find out if people are able to enter a system,” said Trump.
Waltz said that technical experts and legal teams will study the topic.
“Of course, we will keep it as sure as possible,” he said. “No one in your national security team would never endanger anyone.”
Waltz later attacked Goldberg and stated that he and other journalists in Washington, DC, “made great names for themselves for consequences for this president.”
“This one, in particular, I have never met, I do not know, I have never communicated, and we are looking and reviewing how he entered this room,” he said.
Waltz told the President that Goldberg is trying to divert the attention of the “freedom you are in enabling”, saying “the world owes President Trump a favor.”
Ratcliffe and Gabbard both appeared before the Senate Intelligence Committee Previous Tuesday and faced Senators’ questions about the controversy. The two denieds were exchanged classified information on the group chat, but Ratcliffe confirmed that he was a participant in the thread.
Ratcliffe added that the signal was on his agency computer when he took the CIA rudder earlier this year and said that it is “allowed” to use it to communicate and coordinate “for work purposes”.