Overview
- On Friday, June 12, outgoing Director of National Intelligence Tulsi Gabbard published declassified records she says show longstanding U.S. funding for more than 120 biological laboratories across more than 30 countries, including detailed material on facilities in Ukraine.
- ODNI statements say many of the listed labs handled hazardous pathogens and that some projects may have included gain-of-function research, a controversial practice that alters organisms to study traits such as increased transmissibility or virulence.
- Gabbard directed the U.S. Intelligence Community to increase collection on those overseas facilities and said that the effort is already producing additional details about clinical trials and research activities at some sites.
- The release reinforces President Trump’s May 25, 2025 executive order that ended federal funding for gain-of-function research abroad and has led officials to review past cooperative programs and funding streams.
- Experts and outlets differ on what is new in the files, with some noting long-standing Cooperative Threat Reduction work to secure Soviet-era pathogen stocks and others warning the disclosure will intensify political disputes, oversight demands, and safety concerns for populations near affected labs.