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Director of National Intelligence Tulsi Gabbard dropped a bombshell on Friday, revealing never-before-seen evidence allegedly linking U.S. funding to more than 120 biolabs in over 30 countries.
“After months of searching through intelligence community holdings and files, today I’m releasing new evidence of longstanding U.S. government funding of more than 120 biolabs in over 30 countries,” she said in a video statement posted online.
She revealed that one of these locations was Ukraine, “which could be at risk of compromise due to the ongoing Russia-Ukraine war.”
Gabbard said that, until now, “evidence regarding the full existence and funding of these laboratories had been knowingly withheld from you, the American people.”
She highlighted that these facilities have allegedly engaged in research with highly hazardous pathogens and, in some cases, gain-of-function research.
Gabbard cited President Donald Trump’s 2025 executive order (EO 14292) to end federal funding for gain-of-function research worldwide.
“Despite the obvious potential for catastrophic global impact that research on dangerous pathogens in biolabs can have, politicians, and so-called health professionals like Dr. Fauci, as well as entities within the Biden administration’s national security team, lied to the American people about the existence of U.S.-funded and supported biolabs…they threatened those who attempted to expose the truth,” Gabbard said in her statement.
She continued, “Now, ODNI will continue to work closely with partners across the government to identify where exactly these labs are, what pathogens they contain, to end dangerous gain-of-function research that threatens the health and well-being of the American people and people around the world.”
According to the National Center for Biotechnology Information, “gain-of-function research” is a field of virology that aims to “produce a gain of desired function, such as higher yields for vaccine strains, but often also lead to loss of function, such as a loss of the ability for a virus to replicate well, as a consequence.”
In simpler terms, it is the science of enhancing specific pathogenic traits, but it can be very difficult to postulate how a virus will mutate. Additionally, if a virus were to be released for any reason, whether accidentally or by nefarious actors, it could potentially spur a massive crisis. Of course, it has been theorized that the Covid virus, which wreaked havoc globally and spurred a worldwide pandemic, may have originated in a virology laboratory in Wuhan, China.
Director Gabbard issued new guidance to the Intelligence Community, directing the increased collection of information on these many laboratories overseas to determine what types of research are being conducted and whether any of it poses any risks to the U.S.
Gabbard will depart the Trump administration on June 30. She submitted her resignation last month, citing her husband, Abraham’s, difficult cancer diagnosis.
President Trump has nominated Jay Clayton, an American attorney who previously served as the chair of the Securities and Exchange Commission, to be the next director of national intelligence upon Gabbard’s exit. To join the president’s Cabinet, Clayton will next have to endure the intense Senate confirmation process.
