How secret US military plans were accidentally leaked to a journalist by including him in a group chat has shocked politicians and defence experts. The White House has confirmed it is investigating the incident, which minority Democratic leader Chuck Schumer described as “one of the most stunning breaches of military intelligence I have read about in a very, very long time”.
Jeffrey Goldberg, editor-in-chief of The Atlantic, in an article headlined – ‘The Trump Administration Accidentally Texted Me Its War Plans’ – said top US officials inadvertently shared details of US plans to attack Houthi rebels in Yemen, hours before the strikes were launched. The group – on the encrypted messaging platform Signal – reportedly included Vice President JD Vance, Defence Secretary Pete Hegseth and National Security Adviser Mike Waltz. The White House has played down the leak, saying “no war plans were discussed” and no “classified material” was included in the thread read by the journalist.
Here’s a look at five things we learned from the group chat messages.
Until now, JD Vance has very much been on the same page as Donald Trump – who has described the leak as a “glitch” that “turned out not to be a serious one” – since the President returned to the White House.
However, during the leaked messages, Mr Vance appeared to express concerns over the plans.
According to Goldberg’s report, an account sharing the name of the Vice President said he thought the US was “making a mistake”.
The account explained how only a small percentage of US trade runs through the Suez Canal, which means transiting past the Houthis in Yemen, who have been targeting shipping in the region.
He said that only 3% of US trade, compared to 40% of European trade, travels through Suez, writing: “There is a real risk that the public doesn’t understand this or why it’s necessary. The strongest reason to do this is, as POTUS said, to send a message.”
The message also read: “I am not sure the president is aware how inconsistent this is with his message on Europe right now. There’s a further risk that we see a moderate to severe spike in oil prices. I am willing to support the consensus of the team and keep these concerns to myself.”
The VP added there is a “strong argument” to delay the strikes by a month and “doing the messaging work on why this matters”.
Goldberg reported that Mr Vance’s spokesperson later said that despite the messages, he is fully aligned with Mr Trump, adding: “The President and the Vice President have had subsequent conversations about this matter and are in complete agreement.”
It’s no secret that the US administration is not happy with Europe.
Despite Mr Vance’s apparent concerns over the strikes, he told Defence Secretary Hegseth in the chat: “If you think we should do it let’s go.”
He followed this up by saying “I just hate bailing Europe out again,” a discourse that has been regularly presented by this Trump administration which has accused its European allies of leaning too heavily on the US for its security.
Mr Hegseth responded: “VP: I fully share your loathing of European free-loading. It’s PATHETIC.”
Someone in the group known as “S M”, which Goldberg said he took to stand for senior Trump adviser Stephen Miler, said: “As I heard it, the president was clear: green light, but we soon make clear to Egypt and Europe what we expect in return. We also need to figure out how to enforce such a requirement. EG, if Europe doesn’t remunerate, then what? If the US successfully restores freedom of navigation at great cost there needs to be some further economic gain extracted in return.”
Deputy Prime Minister Angela Rayner has looked to smooth over any issues caused, telling BBC Radio 4’s World at One programme that US-UK relations are “as strong as they’ve always been”.
She said “people say things in private messaging” and “it’s for the Vice President to decide and to clarify what he means by those conversations”.
The US Defence Secretary aimed to calm the VP’s concerns over the strikes, who had earlier said there is a “strong argument” to delay the strikes by a month and “doing the messaging work on why this matters”.
In response, Mr Hegseth said outlining to the public that the previous Biden administration “failed” in the region would be important.
He wrote: “VP: I understand your concerns – and fully support you raising w/ POTUS. Important considerations, most of which are tough to know how they play out (economy, Ukraine peace, Gaza, etc). I think messaging is going to be tough no matter what – nobody knows who the Houthis are – which is why we would need to stay focused on: 1) Biden failed & 2) Iran funded.”
Some of Trump’s top team responded to the strikes with emojis, according to Goldberg.
A screenshot from the group showed Mr Waltz responded with a fist, the American flag and fire emoji.
While Steve Witkoff, who has been leading the US ceasefire negotiations with Ukraine and Russia in Saudi Arabia, responded with five emojis: two-praying hands, a flexed bicep and two American flags, Goldberg said in his story.
Secretary of State Marco Rubio responded by saying: “Good Job Pete and your team!!”
While White House chief of staff Susie Wiles said: “Kudos to all – most particularly those in theater and CENTCOM! Really great. God bless.”