Trump does not consider plague outbreak in Russia a bioweapon, but awaits additional data

Assessment of the situation in the White House

US President Donald Trump commented on the epidemiological situation in Russia, where a pulmonary plague outbreak has been recorded. During a conversation with journalists, a video of which was published on YouTube, the American leader stated that Washington currently does not consider this incident a result of biological weapon use.

In response to a specific journalist's question about a possible bioweapon-related origin of the disease, Trump emphasised:

«Ну, ми так не думаємо, і досить скоро дізнаємося. Але ми так не думаємо» (Well, we don't think so, and we will find out pretty soon. But we don't think so).

Scepticism towards statements by Russian officials

The Russian side assures that the situation is under control. However, Donald Trump expressed doubts about the credibility of such claims, citing precedents from the past.

«Вони дуже компетентні, дуже розумні й кажуть, що ситуація дуже сильно під контролем. Таке вже казали раніше щодо інших речей, тож ми сподіваємося, що це так» (They are very competent, very smart, and say that the situation is very much under control. They have said that before about other things, so we hope that is the case), the US president added.

Comparison with previous crises

During the conversation, a journalist reminded Trump of incidents that occurred in Russia a few years ago and asked whether the current situation resembles the start of the coronavirus pandemic in China.

The American leader replied: «Китай мало що говорив, і Росія теж мало що говорить, але вони кажуть, що дуже добре все контролюють» (China said very little, and Russia is also saying very little, but they say they are controlling everything very well).

Although the US head did not confirm the hypothesis of a biological attack, he also did not state that the matter was completely closed. Trump emphasised that the administration needs to obtain more information to reach final conclusions.

Position of the US Secretary of State

US Secretary of State Marco Rubio shared a similar view. He noted that at this point, Washington does not have sufficient data to determine the nature of the plague infection in Russia.

Rubio called on Moscow to share additional information with the international community. The Secretary of State did not rule out that the actual scale of the problem may turn out to be significantly more serious than initially reported.