Trump Offers US Aid to Russia After Suspected Plague Lab Death as Kremlin Welcomes Gesture

President Donald Trump offered US assistance to Russia on Monday after a worker at the Irkutsk Anti-Plague Institute in Siberia died of what Russian media initially reported as pneumonic plague. Speaking to reporters outside the White House, Trump said the US was looking into the situation and would "help them as much as we can," describing the illness as a "rough disease." He added he had not yet spoken directly with Russian President Vladimir Putin about the matter.

The deceased has been identified by Russian media as Darya Shipilova, 28, a researcher at the anti-plague institute located more than 2,500 miles east of Moscow. Initial reports said she broke a test tube containing plague bacteria in late September, developed severe pneumonia and died, with the WHO confirming she died of severe pneumonia overnight into October 2. Russian authorities pushed back on the most alarming accounts, denying any lab accident and attributing her death to "pneumonia of unknown origin," while as many as 189 people were placed under medical observation in the Irkutsk region. The Kremlin welcomed Trump's offer of help.

The WHO assessed the overall public health risk to the general public as low based on the available, if still unofficial, information. Pneumonic plague, caused by the bacterium Yersinia pestis, is of particular concern because, unlike bubonic plague, it can spread person to person and attacks the lungs.

Separately, Trump signed an executive order on October 5 to ease diesel costs amid a global refining shortage, temporarily allowing highway use of tax-free dyed diesel and deferring federal diesel taxes, a move the White House said was aimed at reducing fuel costs for truckers and farmers. The administration also directed the IRS to announce the relief measures within five days of the order.