Rand Paul concerned Russian plague could be ‘weaponized’
Sen. Rand Paul (R-Ky.) raised concerns that Russia could potentially be conducting biological weapons research involving the plague as global health officials seek more information about the mysterious death of a worker at a Siberian lab. The 28-year-old worker died on Oct. 2 after being hospitalized from a severe case of pneumonia, prompting the World...
The Trump administration's struggle to obtain answers about a Russian lab worker's death has escalated, with officials facing Russian resistance to share information about the incident. The death of the technician at the Irkutsk Research Anti-Plague Institute in Siberia raised concerns across the administration, prompting a race to gather intelligence and plan for potential public health risks.
Russia's reluctance to provide details has left officials uncertain about the broader implications and how to best defend the US against any threats. The US has formally requested additional information through a démarche and is coordinating with other nations to share information. US officials hope that limited information sharing will improve in the coming hours and days.
President Trump has scheduled a call with Russian President Vladimir Putin to discuss the issue soon. However, the Kremlin denies arranging the call. So far, the cooperation from Russia has been limited, and officials remain skeptical of the transparency provided. While the initial threat to Americans has been downplayed as treatable with antibiotics, there is concern within the administration about the potential for the situation to escalate, similar to China's handling of Covid-19.
Written by urgent.news from Egypt Independent's reporting — not their text. Machine-written — may contain errors; check the original before relying on it.
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