Donald Trump has offered to assist Vladimir Putin as Russian authorities work to contain what is reportedly a suspected outbreak of deadly pneumonic plague in Siberia.
“Well, we’re looking at it very strongly,” the president said when asked about the disease. “We just heard about it, and they call it pneumonia.”
“And pneumonia, you know, years ago you could treat pneumonia easier,” he added.
“The microbes and the germs have gotten stronger disproportionately, but we’ll help them,” Trump said, referring to Russia.
The offer comes as Russian officials seek to downplay the death of Daria Shipilova, 28, who worked at an anti-plague institute in Irkutsk. Moscow says she died from “pneumonia of unknown etiology” rather than plague.
However, local reports say nearly 200 people are under medical observation, while at least four hospitals in the region have been closed for a three-week quarantine.
More than 60 of Shipilova’s colleagues are also reportedly being kept in isolation inside the institute.
Regional media, citing sources said to be close to the security services, reported that the young woman may have contracted pneumonic plague after a test tube broke inside the laboratory.
“The microbes and the germs have gotten stronger disproportionately, but we’ll help them,” Trump told reporters at the White House on Monday afternoon.
Putin’s regime is seeking to downplay Shipilova’s death on October 2, while suspicions of a state cover-up continue to spread.
Health officials in hazmat suits respond to the suspected plague outbreak in the Irkutsk region, where a mask mandate has also been introduced.
Lab worker Darya Shipilova, 28, died in Siberia after reportedly contracting pneumonic plague following a broken test tube.
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Pneumonic plague affects the lungs and can spread from person to person through respiratory particles. However, prompt treatment with antibiotics can cure the infection.
Shipilova was admitted to a hospital in Shelekhov, a town near Irkutsk, on September 29 with symptoms of severe pneumonia. She died the following week.
Russia’s health watchdog said expanded testing found no microorganisms connected to Shipilova’s work and denied that an accident had occurred at the institute.
Alexei Tsydenov, head of neighboring Buryatia, initially confirmed that she had died of plague before revising his statement days later to say it was “possibly” plague.
Authorities canceled public events in Irkutsk, while law enforcement reportedly opened a criminal investigation into possible health and safety violations. Despite the mounting media attention, regional Governor Igor Kobzev described the situation as stable.
Meanwhile, Marco Rubio said on Monday that Washington was “watching and monitoring it closely.”
Rubio acknowledged that a suspected outbreak could “quickly spread,” but said there was no immediate reason for alarm, particularly because there are no direct commercial flights between the United States and Russia.
“There’s very limited travel between the US and Russia, obviously,” Rubio told reporters on Monday before departing for Iceland.
A researcher from Irkutsk Anti-Plague Institute during a field trip
‘But like anything else, something like that gets out and could quickly spread. So we’re watching and monitoring it closely.’
‘I don’t think it’s cause for alarm, but it is cause for focus and a cause to just keep an eye on it. And we’re doing that,’ he added.