US President Donald Trump has said there were “some threats” behind the decision to pull American bombers from a UK base, insisting the military aircraft “didn’t fly out by accident” from RAF Fairford in Gloucestershire.
President confirms threats behind withdrawal
Asked as he left the White House on Monday if the planes had been moved in response to a threat, Mr Trump said: “Yeah, I think we can say that. They didn’t fly out by accident.
“No, but there were some threats and rather than tempting the enemy, we’ll capture the enemy and beat the enemy.
“But why should we keep them there? So we moved them around a little bit, not very far.”
Rubio played down security link
Earlier, US secretary of state Marco Rubio had sought to play down the withdrawal of the planes after suggestions the move was linked to security concerns.
The top diplomat would not link the departure of the jets to a recent suspected terror plot targeting the base.
