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‘Trump staff’s blunder exhibits they can not be trusted with British lives’ Starmer warned

Keir Starmer has been warned it is a ‘matter of time’ before crucial intelligence putting UK armed forces at risk is leaked by the haphazard Donald Trump adminstration

Vice President JD Vance was a member of a Signal group which shared top secret details about military strikes
Vice President JD Vance was a member of a Signal group which shared top secret details about military strikes(Image: Getty Images )

The Trump administration’s horrific security blunder means British lives could be put at risk if key intelligence is shared, Keir Starmer has been warned.

The Prime Minister has been told it could be a “matter of time” before sensitive information about UK forces leaks after the unimaginable breach. Lib Dem leader Sir Ed Davey said the debacle – which saw war plans accidentally shared with a puzzled journalist – shows the White House “can’t be trusted” to take the most basic steps.

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The incredible error saw America’s virtual war room – where plans were being made to pummel Yemen’s Houthi rebels – exposed to journalist Jeffrey Goldberg, editor-in-chief of The Atlantic. The journalist was inexplicably added to Trump’s national security team group on Signal, where reams of highly-classified information were being shared. Sir Ed said: “Trump’s White House can’t be trusted to take even the most basic steps to keep its own intelligence safe.

“Their fly-by-the-seat-of-your-pants approach to security means it could only be a matter of time until our own intelligence shared with them is also leaked. This could put British lives at risk. As a matter of urgency, the Government must comprehensively review our intelligence-sharing arrangements with the US.”

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Lib Dem leader Sir Ed Davey has issued a stark warning to Keir Starmer
Lib Dem leader Sir Ed Davey has issued a stark warning to Keir Starmer(Image: UK PARLIAMENT/AFP via Getty Imag)

Mr Goldberg was added to a group chat on messaging app signal that saw JD Vance, defence secretary Pete Hegseth and secretary of state Marco Rubio plot attacks on Houthi militants in Yemen.

The Government insists it still has “high confidence” that its operational security measures “remain intact”. Armed forces minister Luke Pollard told the Commons Defence Committee that no British service personnel had been put at risk as a result.

He added: “All UK service personnel are covered by our normal approach to operational security, and the committee will understand that I won’t go into the details of how we keep our involvement in any support for military operations in the Red Sea or anywhere else (secure).

“But we’ve got high confidence that the measures that we have got with our allies, including the United States, remain intact.”The US carried out a series of air strikes against the rebel Houthi militant group in Yemen on March 15 following continued attacks on shipping in the Red Sea.

The US National Security Council said the group chat “appears to be authentic”, adding it was investigating how Mr Goldberg came to be included. On Monday night, US president Donald Trump denied any knowledge of the breach, while a White House spokeswoman said the president retained “utmost confidence” in his national security team.

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The chain of messages included “operational details of forthcoming strikes on Iran-backed Houthi-rebels in Yemen, including about targets, weapons the US would be deploying, and attack sequences”, Mr Goldberg reported

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