‘She’s mistaken’: Trump challenges spy chief Gabbard’s view on Iran’s nuclear program

WASHINGTON, June 21 — US President Donald Trump yesterday rejected Director of National Intelligence Tulsi Gabbard’s recent stance that there is no evidence Iran is pursuing nuclear weapons.

Speaking to reporters at an airport in Morristown, New Jersey, Trump dismissed the earlier intelligence assessments shared by Gabbard, saying, “She’s wrong.”

In March, Gabbard told Congress that the US intelligence community maintained its belief that Iran was not actively building a nuclear weapon. “The (intelligence community) continues to assess that Iran is not building a nuclear weapon,” she said at the time.

However, in a post on X yesterday, Gabbard said, “America has intelligence that Iran is now at the point where it could produce a nuclear weapon within weeks or months, if it decides to go through with final assembly. President Trump has made it clear that cannot be allowed, and I agree.”

Gabbard also claimed her March testimony had been taken “out of context” by the media, which she accused of attempting to “manufacture division.”

The White House has stated that Trump will consider the US position on the Iran–Israel conflict over the coming two weeks. On Tuesday, Trump made similar remarks about Gabbard’s intelligence assessment.

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has defended recent airstrikes on Iranian nuclear and military sites by arguing that Tehran is on the brink of acquiring a nuclear warhead.

Iran, however, denies any intention to develop nuclear weapons, insisting that its uranium enrichment programme is for peaceful purposes only.

Back in March, Gabbard described Iran’s uranium stockpile as unprecedented for a non-nuclear-armed nation and said the US was closely monitoring the situation. She also warned that Iran had begun publicly discussing nuclear weapons, which could embolden advocates for weaponisation within its leadership.

A source familiar with US intelligence reports told Reuters that Gabbard’s March assessment remains unchanged. According to the source, US intelligence agencies estimate Iran would require up to three years to develop a nuclear warhead capable of hitting a target.

David Albright, a former UN nuclear inspector, expressed skepticism about Gabbard’s revised position, estimating it would take Iran at least six months to produce a basic nuclear device—and one to two years to develop a missile-deliverable nuclear weapon. Albright is president of the Institute for Science and International Security.

Trump has a history of rejecting the conclusions of US intelligence agencies, often accusing them—without evidence—of being part of a so-called “deep state” working against his presidency.

Gabbard, a vocal Trump ally, has echoed such allegations in the past.

Throughout his first term, Trump frequently clashed with intelligence officials, including over their findings that Russia interfered in the 2016 presidential election, a conclusion he questioned while siding with Russian President Vladimir Putin’s denials. — Reuters