Tulsi Gabbard, Trump’s top spy pick, faces fresh scrutiny over Syria and Russia positions

Former congresswoman Tulsi Gabbard’s controversial 2017 meeting with Syrian leader Bashar al-Assad and past statements on Russia’s invasion of Ukraine have drawn fresh scrutiny after President-elect Donald Trump picked her to oversee America’s spy agencies.

If confirmed as US director of national intelligence (DNI), Gabbard would act as a steward of the nation’s most important secrets, oversee 18 US spy agencies and serve as a close adviser to the president.

But former US national security officials and lawmakers have raised concerns that the choice of Gabbard – a fierce opponent of America’s involvement in foreign wars whom critics accuse of sympathy for Vladimir Putin – could negatively affect intelligence co-operation.

Lewis Luken, a retired diplomat who served as the deputy chief of mission at the US embassy in London during the first Trump administration, told the BBC that Gabbard’s “dubious judgement” could give allies “reason to question how safe it is to share intelligence with the US”.

Gabbard, who recently joined the Republican Party, has previously said her detractors are “warmongers” who seek to smear any critic of Washington’s establishment.

Trump has also defended his pick, saying that Gabbard – a lieutenant colonel in the Army Reserve who deployed to Iraq and Kuwait – “will bring the fearless spirit that has defined her illustrious career to our intelligence community”.

But in an odd twist for a DNI appointment, Russian state media praised the Gabbard choice, which only added to the alarm among national security officials in the US capital.

Prominent talk show host Olga Skabeyeva said on 14 November that “virtually from the first days of Russia’s special operation in Ukraine, she [Gabbard] explained its reasons, criticised the actions of the Biden administration, and also personally met none other than Syrian President Bashar al-Assad and supported his fight against terrorists.”