US sends Russia diplomatic note after death at plague lab, WSJ
Photo: US Secretary of State Marco Rubio (Getty Images)
The United States has sent Russia a diplomatic note over the death of an employee at a plague laboratory in Siberia and is demanding additional information about the case, according to The Wall Street Journal.
US officials said Russia has disclosed very few details about the laboratory worker's death. Washington believes the lack of information raises questions about potential infectious disease risks both for Russia itself and for other countries.
The US State Department stressed that Moscow must provide more information in accordance with its international public health obligations.
What the US is demanding from Russia
The US diplomatic communication is confidential and is known as a demarche. It was sent to the Russian government demanding additional details about the circumstances surrounding the woman's death and the results of tests conducted.
A State Department spokesperson confirmed that the agency had formally contacted Moscow. The United States is also maintaining official contacts with other countries to exchange information about the case.
US Secretary of State Marco Rubio said the information Moscow has provided so far is "still quite limited."
"We encourage Russia to be transparent and share more information with the world so that all of us could react accordingly and appropriately," Rubio said.
He also said it is currently unclear how serious the situation could be.
"Maybe there’s nothing there. Maybe it’s bigger than we thought. We don’t know," the secretary of state added.
Under the 2005 International Health Regulations, countries must notify the World Health Organization within 24 hours of events that may constitute a public health emergency of international concern.
Countries are also required to provide updated information on laboratory test results and measures taken to contain a potential threat.
The United States is citing these international obligations in demanding more information from Moscow.
What happened before
On September 25, it became known that Daria Shipilova, an employee of the Research Institute for Plague Control in Russia's Irkutsk region, had broken a test tube containing the pathogen that causes pneumonic plague.
On September 29, she was hospitalized with symptoms of severe pneumonia. She died during the night of October 2.
Following her death, several medical facilities in the region introduced quarantine measures, while around 200 people who had been in contact with Shipilova were placed under medical observation. Russian authorities said their plague tests came back negative.
Meanwhile, amid the situation, US President Donald Trump said he wanted to speak with Vladimir Putin in the near future about the plague case.
The United States also offered Russia assistance in connection with the incident.
