The Trump administration has formally demanded information from Russia about the death of a worker at a Siberian laboratory that studies plague, escalating its diplomatic response after days of limited answers from Moscow, CNN reported.
The United States delivered the formal request Tuesday as officials sought to determine what killed the 28-year-old technician at the Irkutsk Research Anti-Plague Institute and whether others face a risk. “We have officially requested additional information from the Russian government,” a State Department spokesperson said. “We are also in official communication with other countries around the world to share information.”
Secretary of State Marco Rubio urged Moscow to disclose what it knows, warning that the gaps in information were complicating efforts to assess the situation. American officials began contacting the Russian government as early as Friday, according to the State Department.
“It’s incumbent upon Russia to obviously share more information with the world,” Rubio said Tuesday. “Maybe it’s bigger than we thought. We don’t know, but I think it would be reckless at this moment, given the limited information we still have, to speculate.”
President Donald Trump told reporters Tuesday that he had a “call scheduled” with Russian President Vladimir Putin “very soon” and expected U.S. agencies to have more information “probably tomorrow.” The Kremlin said Wednesday that no call had been arranged to discuss the incident.
U.S. officials remain uncertain whether the worker contracted pneumonic plague or another disease, CNN reported. Local authorities quarantined the hospital where the technician received treatment, and a regional news outlet reported that nearly 200 people were under observation. Russian authorities told the World Health Organization that no recent plague case had been registered in the region and that testing of the worker’s contacts had detected no high-threat pathogens.
Rubio and other administration officials have downplayed the immediate threat to Americans, but Washington continues to press for details needed to assess the risks. “We encourage Russian authorities to share accurate information quickly and openly,” a State Department spokesperson said.
