Tulsi Gabbard warns: ‘Elites, warmongers’ are driving us toward nuclear doom

US Director of National Intelligence Tulsi Gabbard issued a dire warning on Tuesday (June 10), claiming the world is closer to nuclear annihilation than ever before. The message came in a stark, three-minute video posted to her personal account on X, shortly after her visit to Hiroshima, Japan.

“I recently visited Hiroshima and stood at the epicenter of a city scarred by the unimaginable horror caused by a single nuclear bomb dropped in 1945,” Gabbard said in the video. “What I saw, the stories I heard, and the haunting sadness that remains, will stay with me forever.”

“Closer to the brink than ever before”

Tulsi Gabbard called out what she described as a reckless global drift toward nuclear conflict, driven by political elites and warmongers.

“This is the reality of what's at stake, what we are facing now,” she said. “Because as we stand here today, closer to the brink of nuclear annihilation than ever before, political elite and warmongers are carelessly fomenting fear and tensions between nuclear powers.”

No specific countries named

Although Gabbard refrained from naming any specific nations, her message comes at a time of heightened nuclear anxieties involving Russia, China, Iran, and North Korea.

Gabbard appeared to echo recent Russian narratives surrounding the war in Ukraine — a conflict the Trump administration has been trying to de-escalate.

Graphic footage and simulation of nuclear attack

The video includes Gabbard touring Hiroshima landmarks and historical archive footage of the 1945 atomic bombings.

“A single nuclear weapon today could kill millions in just minutes,” Gabbard warned.

“They’ll have shelters — we won’t”

Gabbard also suggested that political leaders may be less concerned about the consequences because they have access to exclusive protection.

“Perhaps it's because they are confident that they will have access to nuclear shelters for themselves and for their families that regular people won't have access to,” she said. “We must reject this path to nuclear war.”

“Demand an end to this madness”

In her closing appeal, Gabbard called on the public to act.

“We must reject this path to nuclear war and work toward a world where no one has to live in fear of a nuclear holocaust,” she said. “Speak up and demand an end to this madness.”

Context: Trump’s frustration with Putin, Iran talks ongoing

Gabbard’s comments come as President Donald Trump has expressed disappointment over the lack of progress in ceasefire efforts between Russia and Ukraine. Simultaneously, the Trump administration is engaged in sensitive negotiations with Iran on a nuclear deal.