The United States Director of National Intelligence, Tulsi Gabbard, has revised her earlier position on Iran’s nuclear capabilities, stating that Tehran could potentially produce a nuclear weapon within weeks, based on current intelligence assessments.

The shift came days after her testimony before Congress, in which she said Iran possessed a stockpile of nuclear materials but was not actively building nuclear weapons. Gabbard later clarified on social media that her remarks had been taken out of context by what she described as "dishonest media".

 “US intelligence shows Iran is at the point where it can produce a nuclear weapon within weeks to months,” Gabbard wrote.

“President Trump has been clear that can’t happen, and I agree.”

Her reversal followed criticism from former President Donald Trump, who claimed she was "wrong" and insisted that Iran had amassed a "tremendous amount of nuclear material", making its nuclear threat more immediate than previously acknowledged.

Despite repeated US warnings, Iran maintains that its nuclear programme is peaceful and denies any effort to develop nuclear weapons. Speaking on Saturday, Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi stated that Tehran remained open to negotiations but would not engage while "our people are under bombardment."

The development comes amid heightened tensions, with Trump warning that Tehran has two weeks to strike a deal, or face possible escalation, including potential US participation in Israeli strikes on Iranian targets.

Gabbard, in her video testimony from March, had cited findings by US intelligence and the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) that Iran had not resumed its suspended 2003 weapons programme, even though its enriched uranium stockpile, a key ingredient in nuclear weapons, had reached an all-time high.

The IAEA, the UN’s nuclear watchdog, earlier this month raised serious concerns about Iran’s enriched uranium levels, acknowledging that while the material can be used for peaceful energy purposes, it can also be weaponized if Iran chooses to cross the threshold.