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Donald Trump's intelligence chief refused to answer a major question during the grilling.
17:21, Wed, Mar 18, 2026 Updated: 17:51, Wed, Mar 18, 2026
Tulsi Gabbard (Image: Getty)
Donald Trump's director of national intelligence, Tulsi Gabbard, was grilled during an awkward clash with US lawmakers on Wednesday, focused on the Iran war.
Her tense exchange came as Russian state media branded Ms Gabbard their only "friend" in Washington. U.S. lawmakers questioned Gabbard on Wednesday after the resignation of a top counterterrorism official, Joe Kent.
As she was questioned by U.S. lawmakers, Gabbard appeared to avoid answering a question about Iran's 'imminent nuclear threat'. Politico reported that "she’s largely been silent since the U.S. and Israel began striking Iran in late February, and she’s been kept out of military planning on Iran since the U.S. struck nuclear sites in the country last summer".
Trump insisted Iran was very close to developing a nuclear weapon. (Image: Getty)
On Tuesday, the US President, during a tense Oval Office exchange with reporters on Tuesday, said Iran was just "one month" away from developing a nuclear weapon capable of devastating the United States, as global fears of a wider conflict continue to mount.
His comments marked the latest in a series of conflicting explanations for the initial strikes on Tehran that triggered open hostilities on February 28. Insisting Iran was on the brink of nuclear capability, he said: "They would've had a nuclear weapon within one month of when we sent the B-2 bombers to hit their nuclear potential."
The warning comes after officials declared just six months ago that Iran's nuclear capabilities had been "obliterated" in earlier military action. Former counterterrorism chief Joe Kent recently resigned after reportedly concluding Iran posed no immediate nuclear threat.
The hearing focused on Gabbard’s testimony last March, which appeared to downplay Iran’s nuclear weapons program, it was also reported.
Meanwhile, a Russian state TV said Gabbard was a "friend" of the country. In a TV programme, the host said “they’re not friends of Russia except for Tulsi Gabbard, director of National Intelligence… She was considered a lobbyist for Putin’s interests”.
She was also "blamed of spreading the Kremlin's narrative in the west in exchange of money," the host went on to say.
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Recently, Russia has brutally mocked US President Donald Trump over his war in Iran, claiming Tehran has the President "by the throat." Today (March 18), Russia mocked Mr Trump as its newspapers celebrate his "long and expensive" war.
Russian reports said “Iran events show that Russia can’t rely on any diplomatic agreements with the US,” and also added: “You mustn’t cross red lines. A red line was you mustn’t threaten USSR geo-political interests”. They also said the American war in Iran is a "long, punishing, and very expensive" one. Russian daily paper, Kommersant, reported: "Trump wanted to strangle Tehran, but he’s tightened the noose around his own neck," with several other Russian media outlets mocking the American leader's Middle East strategy.
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