They Rehearsed a Plague Outbreak Then a Russian Scientist Died

China and Russia rehearsed a plague outbreak. Five weeks later, a 28-year-old researcher at a participating Russian anti-plague institute was dead.
Coincidence? Or were there warning signs?
The China-Russia joint exercise involved hundreds of emergency personnel preparing for cross-border infectious disease outbreaks—including plague. Then came reports of a possible laboratory accident, nearly 200 people under medical observation, and conflicting statements from Russian officials.
Why was the same research institute involved in the exercise? What did China and Russia know about the risks? And why are Chinese netizens drawing parallels with a coronavirus emergency drill in Wuhan shortly before COVID-19 emerged?
We examine the extraordinary timing, the questions surrounding the Russian scientist’s death, and what this unusual sequence of events may reveal.