President Donald Trump cast doubt on claims that Russia’s pneumonic plague is a bioweapon, although the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention is monitoring reports of the situation.
“Well, we don’t think so. We’re going to find out soon enough, but we don’t think so,” Trump told reporters Wednesday during an Oval Office announcement.
“And if you listen to them, it’s under control,” Trump said of Russia. “You know, people have said that before about other things. So, we hope it is very sophisticated, very smart, and they’re saying it’s very much under control. So, we hope not.”
The president was asked if Russia’s actions were similar to China’s at the start of the COVID-19 pandemic.
“Well, China didn’t say much, and Russia is not saying much either. But they do say they have it very much under control,” Trump said.
Trump previously suggested that he and Russian President Vladimir Putin would speak by phone to discuss the plague “very soon.” However, Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov denied that a call had been set up.
The death of a 28-year-old female staffer, Darya Shipilova, at a Russian anti-plague lab has sparked fears the disease could spread globally. The pneumonic plague is widely regarded as the most virulent form of the plague.
STATE DEPARTMENT REQUESTS ADDITIONAL INFORMATION FROM MOSCOW ON PLAGUE SCARE
On Monday, Trump said the United States was “willing to help” Russia contain the plague. World Health Organization head Tedros Ghebreyesus asked Russia for clarification on “media reports of a second employee with pneumonia of undetermined cause.”
The State Department requested on Wednesday that Moscow provide additional information regarding the plague.