UpdateMay complains to Trump about Manchester attack leaks as British police stop sharing intelligence with US
At today’s Nato summit in Brussels, the US president gets an earful from a frustrated prime minister who can’t understand why British intelligence keeps showing up in US media.
President Donald Trump said the US will investigate intelligence leaks about the Manchester bombing as Prime Minister Theresa May complained to him about the lapses.
May quietly approached Trump during a family photo at the NATO summit to say the UK was unhappy about leaks in US media revealing details about the attack that killed 22 people at a pop concert. British police, who said the leaks amount to a breach of trust, have suspended sharing information about the incident with the US, according to the BBC.
“The alleged leaks coming out of government agencies are deeply troubling. These leaks have been going on for a long time and my administration will get to the bottom of this,” Trump said. “There is no relationship we cherish more than the special relationship between the United States and the United Kingdom.”
The episode is testing one of the world’s closest intelligence-sharing partnerships and could have wider implications for collaboration between the US and its closest allies. The spat comes after Trump himself disclosed sensitive information about Islamic State in a meeting with Russian officials on May 10.
British police have stopped sharing information on the suicide bombing in Manchester with the United States, a British counter-terrorism source told Reuters on Thursday after police said leaks to US media risked hindering their investigation.