In response to last night’s Post revelation about documents found at Trump’s villa, I said that the most likely foreign countries whose defense secrets were found there were the United Kingdom, France and Israel. This was guesswork and a process elimination. But a few of you have written to tell me you suspect it’s Iran. I don’t think so. But the information we have to go on is so minuscule that almost anything is possible. Let me explain.
The reference is to a “foreign government’s military defenses, including its nuclear capabilities.” I interpret this as referring to a current nuclear power — of which there are eight declared and one undeclared (Israel). I don’t interpret that as referring to a country that may want to become or is trying to become a nuclear power. If that supposition is right I think my breakdown of the possibilities is right. But as I told readers who wrote in, the reference is so fragmentary that there’s just no certainty. Could this mean information about Iran’s progress to becoming a nuclear weapons state? Sure.
If the documents were about Iran, Trump’s interest would certainly make a lot of sense. Iran’s nuclear weapons program was a great interest. Any U.S. intelligence would be of great interest to Israel, Saudi Arabia and various other states. So it’s totally possible. But again, I interpret that very thin description as referring to a current nuclear weapons state.
