Karoline Leavitt sighs heavily when asked about $400M Qatari plane 'gift' to Trump: 'I have nothing more'
WASHINGTON, DC: Karoline Leavitt reportedly gave an exaggerated sigh of exasperation when a reporter asked her about the $400 million Qatari airplane apparently gifted to Donald Trump.
The media person shot the question at the White House press secretary in the James S Brady Press Briefing Room, as reported by the Irish Star.
They asked, “I just wanted to clarify once and for all the Qatari jet. The sale or the gift, because the Qatari government is asking the US to clarify the transfer was initiated by the Trump Administration. Is this something the White House is going to do?”
🇺🇸 PRESS SEC LEAVITT: THE QATARI JET IS A GOVERNMENT-TO-GOVERNMENT GIFT
— Mario Nawfal (@MarioNawfal) May 29, 2025
"This is a government-to-government gift transfer from the Qataris to the Department of Defense, to the United States Air Force.
It is now in their hands."
Source: @atrupar https://t.co/G8tZNKo6Ea pic.twitter.com/wrwn2zsWhB
Karoline Leavitt tells reporter she’s ‘nothing more’ to say over Qatari jet
Karoline Leavitt sighed heavily before replying, “The amount of questions we've received, and we have been incredibly clear, and I have answered this, the president has answered this, the Department of Defense has answered this.”
She further mentioned that “this is a government-to-government transfer from the Qataris to the Department of Defense, to the United States Air Force.”
“This is now in their hands and further details on where that stands, I would defer you to the Department of Defense and the United States Air Force. I have nothing more for you on that,” the 27-year-old added.
Qatar government claims airplane is not 'a gift'
Meanwhile, the government of Qatar has denied that the luxury Boeing 747-8 jumbo jet is "a gift" to the US commander-in-chief.
In a statement, Ali Al-Ansari, Qatar’s media attache, said, “Reports that a jet is being gifted by Qatar to the United States government during the upcoming visit of President Trump are inaccurate.”
“The possible transfer of an aircraft for temporary use as Air Force One is currently under consideration between Qatar’s Ministry of Defense and the US Department of Defense,” it noted.
The statement also claimed that things are still “under review by the respective legal departments, and no decision has been made.”
Donald Trump called Qatar’s plane ‘a great gesture’
However, Donald Trump himself had earlier called it a gift.
He stated, “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.”
Also, White House spokesperson Anna Kelly said, “As the president has said, this will be a sovereign-to-sovereign gift to the US Air Force," as per ABC News.
