情报专家和政府官员表示，特朗普政府接受卡塔尔政府捐赠的一架豪华喷气式飞机作为空军一号的计划引发了严重的安全担忧，正如唐纳德·特朗普总统所说说这将是“愚蠢的”不接受免费飞机。
特朗普周一在白宫发表讲话时，为政府接收卡塔尔政府捐赠的一架豪华飞机的计划进行了辩护，称这笔捐赠是“非常好的姿态”。
“我绝不会拒绝这样的提议。我的意思是，我可能是一个愚蠢的人，说，'不，我们不想要一架免费的，非常昂贵的飞机。'但我认为这是一个伟大的姿态，”他说。
参议院军事委员会(Senate Armed Services Committee)最高民主党人罗德岛州参议员杰克·里德(Jack Reed)抨击了这一举动，认为将这架飞机用作空军一号将“通过授予外国对敏感系统和通信的潜在访问权，带来巨大的反情报风险。”
里德在周一的一份声明中说:“这种不顾国家安全和外交礼仪的行为标志着一种危险的意愿，即为了个人利益而牺牲美国的利益。”。“这是对总统办公室的冒犯，也是对任何美国领导人维护国家主权的信任的背叛。”
空军一号是“高价值目标”
目前空军一号机队使用的主要飞机包括两架老化的波音747-200巨型喷气式飞机，自1990年以来一直在运营。尽管飞行超过35年，目前的空军一号喷气式飞机被认为是世界上最安全和可靠的飞机。
飞机上的许多安全措施仍然是保密的。它有反导弹防御或对抗系统，以防止地对空和空对空导弹，通信设备也可以承受核爆炸的脉冲。它还配备了先进的通信能力，使总统能够从飞机上安全地管理国家，并保护他免受网络攻击。
美国广播公司新闻撰稿人、前代理国土安全部官员约翰·科恩(John Cohen)说:“它旨在以安全的方式运送总统，并能够抵御物理攻击，同时确保总统以安全可靠的方式与军方、他的内阁和其他政府领导人保持沟通。”。“总统所在的任何建筑或车辆或飞机都是外国情报机构的高价值目标，他们希望收集尽可能多的总统信息。”
由于能够在半空中加油，空军一号也可以在空中停留几天。飞机上还有一个小型医疗设施，如果需要的话，医生可以在那里进行手术。
所有这些系统都可能需要安装在特朗普将作为卡塔尔礼物收到的波音747-8上。
美国广播公司新闻撰稿人、前中央情报局特工达雷尔·布洛克说，卡塔尔捐赠的飞机也将是一场“反情报噩梦”。
布洛克周一对美国广播公司新闻直播(ABC News Live)表示:“如果你回到外国政府给予的几乎任何东西，都有确保它们没有被窃听的法规、限制和指导方针，而飞机将是一场绝对的噩梦。”"从情报的角度来看，这不是最明智的举措."
布洛克举例说，20世纪80年代，当美国大使馆在莫斯科建造时，美国不得不“把它拆到最低限度”，因为俄罗斯人“在每个房间、每个设施上都安装了窃听器。”
“我认为特洛伊人在接受那匹马时，事后也后悔了，”他说。
改装和检查飞机所需的复杂性和时间提出了成本和时间表的问题。
科恩说:“即使在最好的情况下，也需要做出巨大努力，才能让军方满意地认为，这架飞机是安全建造的，从安装在它上面的情报收集能力的角度来看，它没有受到损害，而且它的建造方式将能够吸收任何空军一号飞机上存在的敏感通信和对抗能力。”。“要想做好，这不会很快发生。”
“为了充分确保这架飞机——它是由一个恰好与伊朗、中国和俄罗斯有关系的外国政府运营的——为了确保这架飞机在建造时没有被引入收集功能，他们必须基本上把它拆到机身上，”他补充说。
白宫致力于“法律细节”
当被问及卡塔尔拥有的波音747飞机可能转让给国防部时，一名国防部官员在一份声明中说，他们将“与白宫(和其他跨部门部门)合作，确保为用于运送美国总统的飞机考虑适当的安全措施和功能任务要求。”
“我们目前没有额外的信息可以提供，”这位官员补充道。
美国空军将有关此事的问题提交给了白宫。
白宫发言人安娜·凯利告诉美国广播公司新闻说:“这架飞机将捐赠给国防部，就像任何赠送给美国政府的外国礼物一样，将遵循所有适当的安全和安保协议。”
众议院议长·迈克·约翰逊周一表示，他不会对特朗普准备接收来自卡塔尔的飞机发表评论，因为他还没有看到“细节”
白宫新闻秘书卡罗林·莱维特周一在福克斯新闻频道露面时说，白宫正在研究卡塔尔政府向国防部捐款的“法律细节”。
“但是，当然，对这个政府的任何捐赠都是完全符合法律的。我们承诺保持最大的透明度，并将继续这样做。
特朗普周一在白宫发表讲话时表示，他卸任后不打算使用这架飞机。美国广播公司新闻高级政治记者雷切尔·斯科特(Rachel Scott)问及他会对那些将豪华飞机视为送给他的个人礼物的人说些什么，特朗普表示，这不是送给他的礼物，而是“送给国防部的礼物”。
熟悉拟议安排的消息人士告诉美国广播公司新闻，这架飞机将作为礼物供特朗普用作新的空军一号，直到他离任前不久，届时飞机的所有权将移交给特朗普总统图书馆基金会。
如果一家私人承包商能够在特朗普总统任期结束前完成捐赠飞机所需的改装，那么如果特朗普总统图书馆基金会在特朗普离任时拥有这架飞机，由于技术的敏感性，安装的许多系统将需要拆除。
科恩说，最终，他怀疑情报界和军方的成员将评估对国家安全的风险，以及“将国家安全风险降至最低的努力程度。”
科恩说:“如果他们在履行职责，总统的国家安全团队将向他解释，如果外国情报机构能够引入收集能力，拦截飞机上的面对面通信和来自飞机的电子通信，会存在多大的风险。”。“他们还应该向他解释为了降低风险需要付出多大的努力。有了这些信息，他就可以做出是否以及在什么条件下接受飞机的明智决定。”
Qatar's luxury jet donation poses significant security risks, experts say
The Trump administration's plan to accept a luxury jet donated by the Qatari government to use as Air Force One raises significant security concerns, intelligence experts and government officials say, as President Donald Trumpsaid it would be "stupid"not to accept a free plane.
Trump on Monday defended the administration's plans to receive a luxury jet donated by the Qatari government during remarks at the White House, calling the donation a "very nice gesture."
"I would never be one to turn down that kind of an offer. I mean, I could be a stupid person and say, 'No, we don't want a free, very expensive airplane.' But it was, I thought it was a great gesture," he said.
Rhode Island Sen. Jack Reed, the top Democrat on the Senate Armed Services Committee, slammed the move, arguing that using the plane as Air Force One would "pose immense counterintelligence risks by granting a foreign nation potential access to sensitive systems and communications."
"This reckless disregard for national security and diplomatic propriety signals a dangerous willingness to barter American interests for personal gain," Reed said in a statement Monday. "It is an affront to the office of the presidency and a betrayal of the trust placed in any U.S. leader to safeguard the nation's sovereignty."
Air Force One a 'high-value target'
The primary aircraft used in the current Air Force One fleet includes two aging Boeing 747-200 jumbo jets that have been operational since 1990. Despite flying for more than 35 years, the current pair of Air Force One jets are considered some of the safest and secure aircraft in the world.
Many of the security features on the plane remain classified. It has anti-missile defenses or countermeasure systems to protect against surface-to-air and air-to-air missiles, and the communication devices can also withstand the pulse of a nuclear blast. It is also outfitted with sophisticated communications capability to allow the president to securely run the country from the plane and protect him from cyberattacks.
"It's designed to transport the president in a safe way and be able to withstand physical attacks, but to also ensure that the president maintains communication with military, his cabinet, other government leaders in a safe and secure manner," said John Cohen, an ABC News contributor and former acting Homeland Security official. "Any building or vehicle or airplane that the president is located is a high-value target for foreign intelligence services who want to gather as much information about the president."
Air Force One can also remain in the air for several days due to its ability to refuel in midair. The plane also houses a small medical facility where doctors could perform surgery if needed.
All of these systems would likely need to be installed on the Boeing 747-8 that Trump would receive as a gift from Qatar.
A jet donated by Qatar would also be a "counterintelligence nightmare," ABC News contributor Darrell Blocker, a former CIA field operative, said.
"If you go back to almost anything that is given by a foreign government, there are regulations and restrictions and guidelines for ensuring that they're not being bugged, and a plane would be an absolute nightmare to be able to confirm that it's not," Blocker told ABC News Live on Monday. "From an intelligence perspective, it's not the brightest move."
Blocker cited that when the U.S. embassy was being built in Moscow in the 1980s, the U.S. had to "take it down to its bare bones" because the Russians "put bugs through every room, every facility."
"I think the people of Troy, when they accepted that horse, regretted it after the fact also," he said.
The complexity and time needed to retrofit and inspect the plane raise questions on cost and a timeline.
"Even under the best of circumstances, it's going to take a significant effort for the military to be satisfied that the aircraft is constructed safely, that it's not compromised from the standpoint of intelligence collection capabilities being planted on it, and that it is built in a way that it will be able to assimilate the sensitive communications and countermeasure capabilities that are that are present on any plane that's Air Force One," Cohen said. "To be done right, it's not going to happen quickly."
"In order to adequately ensure that this airplane -- which was operated by a foreign government that happens to have a relationship with Iran and China and Russia -- in order to ensure that that plane has not had collection capabilities introduced into it when it was constructed, they're gonna have to basically tear it down to the airframe," he added.
White House working on 'legal details'
When asked about the possible transfer of the Qatari-owned Boeing 747 to the Department of Defense, a DOD official said in a statement that they will "work with the White House (and other Interagency departments) to ensure proper security measures and functional-mission requirements are considered for an aircraft used to transport the President of the United States."
"We have no additional information to provide at this time," the official added.
The U.S. Air Force referred questions on the matter to the White House.
"The plane will be donated to the Department of Defense, and as with any foreign gift given to the United States government, all proper safety and security protocols will be followed," White House spokesperson Anna Kelly told ABC News.
House Speaker Mike Johnson said Monday he would not comment on Trump preparing to receive the jet from Qatar because he hasn't seen the "details."
The White House is working on the "legal details" of the Qatari government's donation to the Defense Department, press secretary Karoline Leavitt said Monday in an appearance on Fox News.
"But, of course, any donation to this government is always done in full compliance with the law. And we commit ourselves to the utmost transparency and we will continue to do that," Leavitt added.
Trump said during remarks at the White House on Monday that he doesn't plan to use the plane after he leaves office. Pressed by ABC News Senior Political Correspondent Rachel Scott on what he would say to people who view the luxury plane as a personal gift to him, Trump said it was not a gift to him but "a gift to the Department of Defense."
Sources familiar with the proposed arrangement told ABC News that the plane would be a gift that is to be available for use by Trump as the new Air Force One until shortly before he leaves office, at which time ownership of the plane will be transferred to the Trump presidential library foundation.
If a private contractor were able to complete the modifications needed to the donated plane before the end of Trump's presidency, many of the systems installed would then need to be removed should the Trump presidential library foundation take possession of the plane upon Trump leaving office due to the sensitive nature of the technology.
Ultimately, Cohen said he suspects that members of the intelligence community and the military will assess the risk to national security and "the level of effort to minimize the risk to national security."
"If they're doing their job, the president's national security team will explain to him the level of risk that exists if a foreign intelligence service were able to introduce collection capabilities that could intercept face-to-face communications on the plane, electronic communications coming from the plane," Cohen said. "They should also be explaining to him the level of effort that it will involve in order for that risk to be mitigated. And with that information, he can then make an informed decision on whether and under what conditions to accept the airplane."
