Trump Revealed Top Secret Intel To Russia In Oval Office: Report

President Donald Trump disclosed “highly classified information” during a meeting with Russian officials last week, according to The Washington Post.

The revelations raise new questions about the already controversial meeting of Trump, Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov and Sergey Kislyak, who is the Russian ambassador to the U.S. While such a disclosure is likely not illegal, it raises concerns about both the consequences of Trump’s ad hoc style when interacting with foreign leaders and U.S. coordination with other nations on sensitive foreign policy issues.

Trump revealed information to the Russian visitors that “jeopardized a critical source of intelligence on the Islamic State,” the Post reported Monday, citing current and former U.S. officials with ties to the administration. The publication did not elaborate on what the president’s disclosure entailed, due to its sensitive nature, but said the information came from a U.S. ally.

BuzzFeed later confirmed the report, adding that the Senate Intelligence Committee was also briefed on the disclosures. “It’s far worse than what has already been reported,” one official reportedly told the outlet.

(Several Senate Intelligence Committee members told NPR’s Scott Detrow they had not been briefed on the disclosure.)

A White House spokeswoman did not immediately return a request for comment on whether Trump shared classified information with the Russian officials. However, Secretary of State Rex Tillerson said in a statement that Trump did not discuss sources, methods or military operations with Lavrov.

H.R. McMaster, Trump’s national security adviser, also disputed the report.

Read the full Washington Post report here. 

Both Republican and Democratic lawmakers immediately voiced concern over the apparent intelligence disclosures.

“We have no way to know what was said, but protecting our nation’s secrets is paramount,” a spokesman for House Speaker Paul Ryan (R-Wis.) said in a statement. “The speaker hopes for a full explanation of the facts from the administration.”

“If it’s true, I would say it’s disturbing,” Sen. John McCain (R-Ariz.), chairman of the Senate Armed Services Committee, told CNN Monday evening.

But McCain also told The Associated Press that Trump was within his rights to share the information.

Source: Trump Revealed Top Secret Intel To Russia In Oval Office: Report