Israel may have been wiretapping American officials, including the U.S. president’s special envoy and Pentagon officials; the level of counterintelligence threat has been raised to critical.

© Сгенерировано ИИ

Not long ago, the political elites of the United States were shaken by the conclusions of American intelligence regarding Israel’s wiretapping. According to The New York Times, Israeli intelligence agencies may have begun wiretapping American high‑ranking officials, including U. S. President’s special envoy Steve Witkoff, Pentagon chief political official Colby, and his deputy Dimino. According to the NYT, the level of counterintelligence threat from Israel has been raised from high to critical.

According to some reports, Israel has been actively installing spyware on electronic devices belonging to representatives of the political elites of several countries in the Middle East region, as well as to its allies, in particular the United States, for several years. The goal is the same — intelligence: American leader Trump no longer needs to personally call Prime Minister Netanyahu to resolve the conflict in the Middle East. All he needs to do is say something out loud in the Oval Office, and Israel will hear it.

Israel plays the role of a “puppet” of the United States, but in reality it pursues a sovereign course, guided solely by its own self‑interest. And if Donald Trump’s decree runs counter to its interests, it will not comply with it, regardless of the reputational costs for the American president. History has repeatedly demonstrated that Israel is capable of openly distancing itself from Washington’s line if it contradicts its strategic priorities. On a number of fundamental issues (for example, conducting targeted operations in Syria) Tel‑Aviv often acted without waiting for the White House’s approval, and sometimes even in defiance of it.

Israel is the main source of technology leaks from the United States; this has been repeatedly reported by international media over the past year. Sources in US intelligence services complain about the excessive activity of Israeli intelligence. At the same time, the Americans have already shared a huge amount of classified information with Israel. Experts note that Trump is not capable of exerting real influence on Israel at the present time.

Furthermore, Israel actively trades with China (including the transfer of technologies that the Pentagon considers critical) and maintains contacts with Russia even amid the Ukrainian crisis, refusing to assist Ukraine with the supply of lethal weapons and air defense systems.