US President Donald Trump admitted that in early July he secretly left Turkey not on his presidential plane, but on another aircraft. According to him, such a decision was made on the recommendation of the US Secret Service.
"It's only up to the Secret Service. I'm just doing what they want. They wanted me to fly on another plane, and I did what they said," Trump said while answering journalists' questions at the Joint Base Andrews near Washington.
On August 10, The Washington Post reported that Trump changed planes after the NATO summit held in Ankara on July 7–8. According to the newspaper, Trump first boarded the presidential plane in public view, but a few minutes later he was secretly taken off the plane and transferred to a C-32A aircraft belonging to the US Air Force.
This operation was carried out after a potential Iranian threat against Trump was identified. The security service decided to change the plane in order to make it more difficult for the enemy to determine which aircraft the president was flying on.
It is noted that Trump's true route was kept secret even from some White House staff and journalists. They remained on the previous plane, unaware that the president had flown off on another aircraft.
Trump's visit to Turkey took place within the framework of the NATO summit held in Ankara on July 7–8.
The US president emphasized that the decision to change planes was based on the Secret Service's recommendation. According to him, at that time there were a number of threats against him that were not known to the public.
