Image source, AFP via Getty Images Image caption, The victim was working at the anti-plague institute in the Siberia city of Irkutsk ByVicky Wong and Gabriela Pomeroy Published 7 October 2026, 10:59 BST Updated 2 minutes ago US President Donald Trump says he has a call set up with Vladimir Putin about the death of a lab worker at a plague research centre in Siberia.

Russian officials say they are investigating the death of the 28-year-old employee and have not confirmed that the suspected disease is pneumonic plague.

They insist there is no risk of an epidemic.

Trump told reporters on Wednesday evening he did not believe it was a bioweapon, adding "we're going to find out soon enough, but we don't think so," "If you listen to them, it's under control," he said, referring to Russian authorities.

"We hope it is," he added.

Reports emerged on Friday of almost 200 people being placed under observation after the death.

Referring to China's initial response to the Covid pandemic, Trump said: "Well, China didn't say much, and Russia is not saying much either.

But they do say they have it very much under control." Pneumonic plague is a serious lung infection, often described as the most virulent form of plague.

Trump said the US was in "deep discussions" with Russia, but the Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov said no phone call had been scheduled.

The head of the World Health Organization (WHO) has called for more transparency from Russia, and requested further information on the lab tests on the individual who died.

"We don't yet have the full picture of this event," Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus said, adding that the WHO was also seeking "verification of media reports of a second employee with pneumonia of undetermined cause." Ghebreyesus called on Russia to provide "timely, complete and transparent information" in order to clarify "conflicting reports" and help the WHO assess the potential public health risks.

Speaking to reporters on Wednesday, Putin's spokesman said Russia's reporting of the death to the WHO was in line with standard practice, and accused the media of reporting "false information".

The US has issued a formal diplomatic message to Russia requesting additional information.

Peskov told reporters he was not aware of such a request.

The lab worker, named in Russian media as Darya Shipilova, had reportedly fallen ill a couple of days earlier.

Unconfirmed reports suggested that she had become ill after either breaking a test tube containing the pathogen at the Anti-Plague Institute of Siberia and the Far East where she worked or following a field trip to a region where plague occurs naturally among wild rodents.

As the US and the WHO sought more information, the country's health watchdog, Rospotrebnadzor, issued a statement saying "there are no epidemic risks for the population of Irkutsk and the Irkutsk region".

It said more than 90% of the people who had been in contact with the victim had "completed medical observation" and "no health disorders associated with infectious pathology were detected".

Neighbouring Mongolia's government has ordered "health surveillance" measures on its border with Russia, AFP news agency reported.

The country's health ministry said it would "maintain continuous surveillance and monitoring to prevent potential risks".

This was a precautionary measure, it said, adding "the current risk level is low." Lithuania's health ministry said it has made preparations to manage any possible case in the country.

Laboratory testing is available, patients would be isolated in infectious disease hospitals, contacts would be identified, and the country has the stocks of medicines suitable for treatment, according to Nerija Kaulakien, an adviser at the Ministry of Health's Communications Division, in an interview with ELTA news agency.

There was no evidence of "an increased risk of plague" at the moment, she said.

In the immediate wake of the laboratory worker's death, Russia's health watchdog had issued a statement saying the woman had died of "pneumonia of an undetermined etiology" and that testing found "no microorganisms related to her professional activities".

However, after this announcement, a pro-government federal news outlet deleted five posts mentioning a possible plague case, and authorities in the town of Baikalsk deleted a message advising against travel to Shelekhov because of a possible plague infection.

Ongoing speculation into the lab worker's death has sparked a back and forth between Russia and the US, with questions about a possible spread outside of Russia.

US Secretary of State Marco Rubio said the US had "measures" available to help Russia if the situation turned out to be more serious than claimed.

According to the WHO, pneumonic plague has a very short incubation period - sometimes just 24 hours - and can be fatal, if not diagnosed and treated early.

People can be infected through: infected flea bites contact with bodily fluids or contaminated materials the inhalation of respiratory particles Symptoms include shortness of breath and coughing, often with blood-tainted phlegm.

The bacterium that causes the plague, Yersinia pestis, found among rodents such as marmots in the area.

It killed up to half the population of Europe in the 14th Century when it was known as the Black Death.

It was in response to an outbreak in the 1920s that the Anti-Plague Institute of Siberia and the Far East, was founded just over 100 years ago.