Trump says he does not believe that possible Russian plague outbreak is a bioweapon

President Donald Trump downplayed concerns Wednesday that the recent suspected outbreak of the plague in Russia is actually a bioweapon, after reports surfaced of a possible outbreak at an anti-plague research laboratory in Siberia.

Roughly 200 people have been placed in quarantine in connection to the death of a lab worker who reportedly died after breaking a test tube containing the pathogen that causes pneumonic plague. 

Trump has said the United States will help Russia if they do develop a plague outbreak but that he does not believe they are using the plague as a bioweapon.

"We don’t think so,” the president told reporters when asked if it was a bioweapon. "We're going to find out soon enough, but we don't think so. If you listen to them, it's under control. You know, people have said that before about other things ... So we hope not."

The president also said that Russia is sharing some information with the United States regarding the potential outbreak, and he expects the Russian government will share "a lot" with his team, according to The Hill.

There have also been accusations of a cover-up by Russian authorities after public health notices were deleted. 

The comments come the same day the State Department formally asked Russia for more information about the possible outbreak.

Misty Severi is a news reporter for Just The News. You can follow her on X for more coverage.