The Kremlin on Monday said it welcomed President Donald Trump’s offer to provide assistance to Russia amid mounting global concern around the death of a lab worker from an anti-plague institute in Siberia, but gave no more details about the case.
“It is always very good when mutual assistance is offered,” presidential press secretary Dmitry Peskov told journalists.
Peskov appeared to downplay Trump’s suggestion the issue was a “major problem for Russia,” telling a journalist he had not heard that framing.
“To be honest, I did not hear the president’s words that he considers this a major problem for Russia. As far as I remember it was not said that way, although I may be mistaken,” Peskov responded.
He declined to give any further details on the suspected pneumonic plague case, saying all information should come from Russia’s consumer health agency, Rospotrebnadzor.
Meanwhile, Elena Sofyina, Deputy Mayor of the Shelekhov for Social Sector Management, commented on Donald Trump’s statement about his readiness to provide assistance.
“Information has emerged that Donald Trump is ready to help us deal with the pneumonia situation in the district. I believe it’s necessary to respond directly. We can handle it ourselves,” Sofyina said.
“The situation is under full control. Rospotrebnadzor, the regional team, and the administration of the Shelekhovsky District are working together. The dangerous diagnosis has not been confirmed, but we are still following all the protocol measures,” Sofyina added.
Secretary of State Marco Rubio, asked in Iceland by ABC News whether he had reason to believe there has been an accidental release of an intentionally modified strain of the plague, said it would “irresponsible for me here to sit and speculate because we just don’t have all the information yet.”
“I think it’s incumbent upon Russia to obviously share more information with the world. That’s what they should do,” the secretary said.
Rubio said his department was tracking the situation “hour by hour.”
“Suffice it to say, we’re watching it very closely, and I think the whole world is watching it very closely because, depending on what we learn about it, we would know how to respond,” Rubio said.
“We encourage Russia to be transparent and share more information with the world, so that all of us could react accordingly and appropriately. But we’ll have to make those decisions on the basis of the information that we’re learning and are being provided. And so far, that’s still quite limited. But hopefully, that will change in the next few hours and days,” he added.
A State Department official on Tuesday confirmed the U.S. has made contact with the Russian government over a suspected plague death in Siberia.
“We have been in contact with the Russian government, including our health experts at the State Department with the Foreign Ministry as early as last Friday,” the official said.
Health authorities in the Siberia region of Irkutsk last week launched “anti-epidemic” measures after a lab worker from an anti-plague institute died in hospital. Local Russian media have named the worker as 28-year-old Daria Shipilova, who studied plague at the Anti-Plague Research Institute in the town of Shelekhov, just outside Irkutsk, which is about 2,600 miles from Moscow.
Russian authorities have said only that that the case of the lab worker’s death was “pneumonia of an unknown cause,” with the health agency Rospotrebnadzor saying tests showed no link with her work.
But on Tuesday, Rospotrebnadzor’s office for the Irkutsk region issued a statement, saying “A false message is being circulated online about the introduction of an enhanced sanitary and epidemiological regime and strict restrictions in the Irkutsk region.”
“We inform you that the said document and information are not related to official sources and are unreliable,” the statement said.
“The sanitary and epidemiological situation in the Irkutsk region and the cities of Irkutsk and Shelekhov is stable. A set of preventive measures and medical monitoring of contacts is nearing completion. Laboratory tests identified two cases of COVID-19 and two cases of rhinovirus infection. No other infectious disease pathogens were detected among the contacts,” the statement further said.
The statement came after some Russian media and public figures reported a death potentially due to plague and linked to a lab worker. Russian officials did not provide further details about the worker. The Russian agency’s statement said that “no accidents have been detected at the Irkutsk Anti-Plague Institute while working with pathogenic microorganisms.”
The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) said in a statement Sunday that it is “monitoring the situation closely” with the State Department, adding “the safety and security of U.S. citizens is our highest priority.”
“Many details have not been confirmed. We encourage Russian authorities to share accurate information quickly and openly,” a State Department spokesperson said in a statement. “Plague is a known disease and is treatable with common antibiotics, especially when treatment starts early. Cases occur naturally in many parts of the world.”
On Tuesday, the CDC said in a statement, in part, that “at this time, there is no indication of a broader threat to the United States, but CDC and our interagency partners are prepared and will continue to monitor the situation closely.”
Plague is a disease caused by the bacterium Yersinia pestis, according to the CDC. There are three types of plague: bubonic, pneumonic and septicemic. Symptoms often include fever, chills and weakness. Plague can be treated with antibiotics. The earlier antibiotics are received, the higher the chances of a full recovery.
The U.S. averages about seven cases of plague each year, mostly in Western states, according to the CDC, which notes it has been more than a century since the U.S. has seen a documented case of person-to-person spread of plague.
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