Ex-Nato officer on the US faux pas "They talk like buddies in a cowboy chat"

The signals scandal is gripping the US government: after the chat debacle, the allies will question the trust of the USA, warns a former NATO officer. The expert classifies the case.

The USA was once probably the world's leading intelligence nation, but now the signals intelligence scandal is shaking the country.

An official secret was revealed by a signals chat group of all people: Under Donald Trump's administration, senior members of the government planned an airstrike on Huthi positions in Yemen - and forgot that a journalist was reading along.

Jeffrey Goldberg, editor-in-chief of the renowned magazine "The Atlantic", was inadvertently added to the encrypted chat and thus gained insight into highly sensitive military planning.

"It doesn't get any worse than this"

How could such a faux pas happen? Jörg H. Trauboth is a crisis manager and retired colonel (out of service) in Germany. For him it is clear: "Something like this happens when the members of the US administration have no experience whatsoever in handling confidential information securely. For me, this is an amateur security policy team."

The highlight was that editor-in-chief Jeffrey Goldberg had received the detailed war plan in a chat group four days before the mission. "It doesn't get any worse than that," says Trauboth.

The matter is all the more explosive because the people involved are high-ranking members of the government. "I have never heard of a case in which top officials comment on a planned military operation in such a way and talk like buddies in a cowboy chat - as if they were on a games console," explains Trauboth.

The hail of bombs was met with praise, emojis and prayers. Trauboth is shocked: "Steve Witkoff replied with five emojis: two praying hands, a tensed bicep and two American flags. This man is negotiating with Putin. You have to keep that in mind."

The behavior is not only criminal, but absolutely disrespectful. Disrespectful to the American people, disrespectful to the pilots in the cockpits and all the soldiers involved in the operation, and disrespectful to the victims on the ground.

But the question still arises: why do top government officials even have such a chat group that is not secure? Trauboth has a hunch: "I assume that the administrator started this chat as a private Signal account holder."

There were certainly other security rules. He adds: "But as is so often the case when using secure systems, there are inhibitions that may have prevented the administrator from sending invitations." Apart from that, a planned attack does not belong in a chat communication, but in the Pentagon's operations center and nowhere else.

The USA can pack up, trust has been broken

Such an action not only has domestic political repercussions, but also calls into question the trust between the allies and the USA, explains Trauboth: "For the allies, it means that these individual busybodies, who are invariably unqualified for their office, cannot be trusted. In this respect, they are in good company with their boss in the White House."

And further: "For me, the incredible communication behavior is no real surprise. Narcissists know no boundaries. They only celebrate themselves. You can assume that they will never change their behavior. They are like that."

The case also makes it clear how angry JD Vance is with the Europeans, for whom the USA once again has to pull the coals out of the fire. Trauboth says: "This fits in with the administration's basic attitude: no more dollars for Europe that you can't get back."

Are there any consequences?

Trauboth is referring to the quote from the chat: Stephen Miller, Trump's deputy chief of staff, suggested asking Europe to pay up after a successful attack: "If the [USA] successfully restores freedom of trade routes at great cost, then we must take economic advantage of it in return."

It almost seems as if Trump can now get away with anything. Will the US administration suffer any consequences at all? "After all, criminal proceedings were initiated against Donald Trump when it emerged that he was storing secret documents at home. Unfortunately, the proceedings were dropped," says Trauboth.

If there were to be proceedings against the officers, which Trauboth doubts, this would also be a nullity. "Because if there's one thing we've learned, this administration is above the law," says Trauboth.

Clear words from the ex-officer

Jörg Trauboth has clear words. His opinion is: "As a former air force and NATO officer, I am committed to my values and, of course, to the necessary secrecy in military matters."

There are levels of military secrecy that leave no room for maneuver. This is probably "Top Secret", the highest level of secrecy in the USA. "It is used for information that would cause 'exceptionally grave damage' to national security if it were to become public knowledge."

One thing is clear: Trauboth has zero understanding for this casual attitude of politicians who are entrusted with the security of the USA and parts of the world.