Are Europe's secret services shutting down in the face of Trump's Putin girlfriend?

WAZ Are Europe's secret services shutting down in the face of Trump's Putin girlfriend? Dirk Hautkapp • 1 hour • 4 minutes reading time The exchange of highly sensitive information, detached from party political considerations, is an indispensable part of the work of Western secret services. The basis for this is professional trust. Donald Trump's nomination of the Hawaiian ex-congresswoman Tulsi Gabbard, known for conspiracy theories, conspicuous understanding of Russia and closeness to dictators, as coordinator of all 18 intelligence agencies from the NSA to the CIA, has therefore caused shock waves. European representatives of security authorities in Washington see the 43-year-old Hindu as an "at least unreliable cantonist". The question of how much information, especially about Moscow's activities, "can be shared in which circles without concern in the future, is suddenly virulent," said a European official in Washington who is familiar with the processes. Gabbard was a Democrat for a long time, ran for president against Joe Biden in 2020, later became estranged from her party and only officially joined the Trump Republicans a few months ago. Abigail Spanberger, Democratic congresswoman from Virginia and former CIA officer, understands the European concerns. "Not only is she poorly prepared and unqualified, but she also traffics in conspiracy theories. As a member of the House Intelligence Committee, I am deeply concerned about what this nomination means for our national security." "She is being put there to serve Donald Trump's interests" "She is not being put in this position to do the job or to be good at it. She is being put there to serve Donald Trump's interests," adds the highest-ranking Democrat on the House Armed Services Committee, Adam Smith. Open concerns also come from Great Britain, which maintains the close "Five Eyes" alliance with Australia, Canada, New Zealand and the USA. British media quote Richard Dearlove, the former head of Mi6: "This is an idiosyncratic appointment. She has no experience in intelligence and security." Philip Ingram, a former intelligence and security officer in the British Army, says: "I think the appointment of someone who has no intelligence experience whatsoever as director of national intelligence should be a red flag." "This is an idiosyncratic appointment." The US magazine "The Atlantic" describes Gabbard as a "walking Christmas tree with warning lights." This is due to her great understanding of people who are generally understood by few in politics in America. She used to be a Democrat. Now she is a Trump fan. The US president-elect particularly likes that kind of thing. That's why he is promoting Tulsi Gabbard. Gabbard has defended both Syrian dictator Bashar al-Assad and Russian President Vladimir Putin. She sympathizes with both rulers. America is the problem, she has often said since she began her work in Congress in 2013. The dictators are misunderstood. In addition, a military-political complex in Washington is trying to permanently drag the USA into foreign wars. In response to criticism of her, Gabbard replied that it was foreseeable that "the swamp in Washington" would rebel. Gabbard, a lieutenant colonel in the reserves, previously deployed in the Hawaii National Guard in medical, police and civil affairs, including in Iraq, met with Syria's dictator Assad in 2017 as a Democratic congresswoman. After contact with the mass murderer, who is treated as a pariah on the world stage, she said that peace in Syria is only possible if the international community talks to him. "Let the Syrian people decide their own future, not the United States, not some foreign country," Gabbard explained. She did not mention that dictator Assad prevented his people from doing just that, including through the murderous use of chemical weapons, which also claimed hundreds of children. Democrats fear that Tulsi Gabbard is being used as an important henchman for the relationship between Donald Trump and Russian President Vladimir Putin. Gabbard's love of Russia is even more irritating. The arch-conservative Washington Examiner notes that Gabbard blames NATO and the United States for the Russian invasion of Ukraine. This regularly earns Gabbard applause in Russian state media, where she is often referred to as a friend of Russia. Gabbard literally stated after the Russian attack in early 2022: "This war and this suffering could have easily been avoided if the Biden administration/NATO had simply ignored Russia's legitimate security concerns.