Overview
- Outgoing Director of National Intelligence Tulsi Gabbard publicly released declassified documents on Friday showing U.S. funding for more than 120 biological laboratories in over 30 countries and ordered increased collection on those sites.
- The files include site-level details for more than 40 laboratories in Ukraine, listing stored Soviet-era and other dangerous pathogens such as anthrax, tuberculosis, Ebola and SARS and noting biosafety problems at some facilities.
- ODNI said many U.S.-funded labs worked with hazardous agents and in some cases conducted gain‑of‑function or other high‑risk research, raising questions about oversight, permits, funding amounts and clinical trials at specific sites.
- Gabbard linked the disclosure to President Trump's May 25, 2025 executive order that ended federal funding for dangerous gain‑of‑function research abroad and said the intelligence push aims to identify what pathogens these labs hold now.
- The documents and new guidance kick off an interagency effort to validate site claims, assess on-the-ground risks from the Russia‑Ukraine war and pursue policy or security steps that could affect partners, contractors and local staff.