Foreign intelligence agencies are wary of sharing classified data with the administration of the US President Donald Trump, considering it "unreliable" in storing information.
Politico writes about this, citing sources.
Allies that regularly share intelligence with Washington are concerned that Trump will continue to leak classified information during his second term. The concerns have grown after the US Congress approved controversial decisions by Trump to oversee intelligence operations. And amid accusations that sensitive data is already being handled improperly.
At the same time, cooperation in the field of intelligence gathering and sharing has deep roots — it is not easy to break. Washington often gives away more data than it receives. And American and European intelligence services often conduct joint intelligence-gathering operations.
“You can’t just stop it,” said an unnamed Northern European defense official.
Politico notes that the most valuable and closely guarded information obtained from agents in other countries, whose lives could be at risk if disclosed, could be strengthened. They could, for example, omit details in conversations with American counterparts that could reveal the agentʼs location or identity.
At least some allies have been less forthcoming during Trump’s first term. For example, he once shared a top-secret image of an Iranian missile site on X (formerly Twitter) and shared top-secret Israeli intelligence data with the Russian foreign minister.
A former senior official at Britainʼs foreign intelligence service MI6 said that earlier, during Trumpʼs first term, they were cautious about what information from secret projects to share with him.
Concerned foreign partners are hoping to deal more with CIA Director John Ratcliffe and less with Director of National Intelligence Tulsi Gabbard. Ratcliffe served as director of national intelligence during Trumpʼs first administration and was considered one of the least controversial candidates in the presidentʼs cabinet.
CIA spokeswoman Liz Lyons said the allegations were “unfounded”. She said the intelligence agency takes international partners “incredibly seriously”.
At the same time, Politico calls the concerns of the US partners “far from hypothetical”. In the month of Trump’s presidency, American intelligence has already been accused of mishandling classified information. According to the publication, the CIA sent an unclassified email with a list of the names and initials of recently hired analysts and operatives, many of whom were hired to work with China, to the personnel department. So now they can be listened to by foreign intelligence agencies.
- On January 24, the US Senate confirmed John Ratcliffe as the new director of the CIA. He is a long-time supporter of the fight against the Chinese Communist Party, and is approved by both Democrats and Republicans.
- On February 12, Tulsi Gabbard became the Director of National Intelligence. She opposed support for Ukraine and spread Russian fake news.
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