WASHINGTON, Oct 8 — US President Donald Trump said on Wednesday that the United States does not believe a reported plague-related death in Russia was caused by a biological weapon and that officials are continuing to assess the situation, Anadolu Ajansi reported.
Asked by reporters at the White House whether the plague was a biological weapon, Trump said, “Well, we don’t think so. We’re going to find out soon enough, but we don’t think so.”
Trump said Russian authorities had described the situation as being under control but expressed caution about their assurances.
“And if you listen to them, it’s under control,” Trump said. “You know, people have said that before about other things.”
Trump said he hoped the situation would remain contained and that authorities would be able to manage the outbreak.
“So, we hope it is very sophisticated, very smart, and they’re saying it’s very much under control,” he said. “So, we hope not.”
The World Health Organisation (WHO) is seeking additional information from Russia on the death of a laboratory worker from suspected pneumonic plague, as well as reports of a second employee with pneumonia of unknown cause, its chief said on Wednesday.
Trump was also asked whether he had spoken with his Russian counterpart, Vladimir Putin.
“I have a call set up. Today is his birthday. Today is Vladimir Putin’s birthday,” he said.
Asked whether Russia had been sharing enough information about the situation in Siberia, Trump said it was sharing information “a little bit”.
“We expect them to share it a lot with our people,” he said. “I just met with our people. We have brilliant experts. They know everything about what’s going on, and all of that information is going through them.”
The US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) said on Tuesday that it was closely monitoring reports of the suspected case of pneumonic plague in Russia.
— BERNAMA-ANADOLU
