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RUSSIA PERSPECTIVE
TRUMP'S INTELLIGENCE CHIEF TULSI GABBARD RESIGNS
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DOMINANT ANGLE
Moscow highlights the disturbing coincidence between Tulsi Gabbard's resignation and her investigation into US-funded Ukrainian biolaboratories — a dossier that Russian authorities have been pursuing since 2022.
Dominant angle identified — does not reflect unanimity of this country’s media
ANALYSIS
Moscow, May 22, 2026. For Russian state media, Tulsi Gabbard's resignation as US National Intelligence Director is not just a personal drama. RT puts front and center a detail that Western outlets have largely downplayed: less than two weeks before the announcement, Gabbard told the New York Post she was investigating over 120 US-funded biolaboratories worldwide, including over 40 in Ukraine. Her team was to determine if these facilities had conducted research on modifying viruses to make them more lethal or transmissible.
This narrative thread directly resonates with Moscow's official positions. Russia's Defense Ministry had warned of the existence of these labs since early 2022, publishing documents detailing work on plague, anthrax, tularemia, and cholera. In 2023, Lieutenant General Igor Kirillov, head of Russia's radiological, chemical, and biological defense forces, concluded, after reviewing thousands of seized documents from labs in Donetsk, Luhansk, and Kherson, that the US had conducted dual-use research, including the creation of biological weapons components, near Russia's borders. Kirillov was assassinated in 2024, according to Moscow, by Ukrainian services.
RT also notes that Gabbard publicly defended, in 2022, the thesis that the Ukraine conflict 'could have been easily avoided if the Biden administration and NATO had simply recognized Russia's legitimate security concerns.' This formulation aligns directly with the Kremlin's narrative on the conflict's origins. Her nomination as DNI director was thus met with particular interest in Moscow, as she represented a dissenting voice within the US security apparatus.
TASS adopts a more subdued tone, citing Trump's statement on Truth Social — 'Tulsi did an incredible job, she will be missed' — and confirming that Aaron Lukas, her deputy, will take over. TASS's factual approach contrasts with RT's emphasis on Gabbard being gradually excluded from major strategic decisions: neither informed of alleged plans to kidnap Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro in January nor involved in discussions on a potential strike against Iran in February.
The official resignation will take effect on June 30, 2026.
KEY POINTS
- Less than two weeks before her resignation, Gabbard investigated over 120 US-funded biolaboratories, including over 40 in Ukraine (New York Post statement)
- Russian Lieutenant General Kirillov concluded in 2023 that the US conducted dual-use research near Russia's borders; he was assassinated in 2024
- Aaron Lukas, Gabbard's deputy, will take over as DNI director; Gabbard's resignation will take effect on June 30, 2026
COGNITIVE BIASES IDENTIFIED
Biolab-centered framing: RT structures its article around the Ukrainian lab investigation, a dossier aligned with the Russian Defense Ministry's official positions
Preference for Gabbard's anti-NATO views: her 2022 statements on 'legitimate security concerns' are prominently cited, reinforcing the Russian narrative on the conflict's origins
Limited coverage of personal context: RT briefly mentions Gabbard's husband's rare bone cancer, unlike TASS, which sticks to official facts
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