The GOB Prepares For Bird Flu

UNCLAS SECTION 01 OF 02 MINSK 000445

SIPDIS

FRANKFURT FOR RUSSELL BROWN
CA/OCS/ACS FOR MARISOL URBINA-MITTNACHT

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E.O. 12958: N/A
TAGS: KFLU PGOV PHUM ECON CASC BO
SUBJECT: The GOB Prepares For Bird Flu



1. (SBU) Summary: The GOB on March 24 ratified a plan
to prevent avian influenza (AI) from appearing in
Belarus and to isolate it in case of an outbreak.
Belarus has long banned poultry product imports and
animal feed from nations with confirmed cases of AI but
just recently issued decrees on proper packaging and
labeling of poultry products and forbidding domestic
poultry from roaming freely. The government also
purchased large supplies of H5N2 virus vaccinations for
domestic birds living near zones susceptible to AI.
Although GOB health officials seem prepared to handle an
AI outbreak, the economic interests of the GOB could
possibly prevent proper reporting should an outbreak
occur. The President downplayed the AI threat as "idle
talk" and his new five-year plan calls for a USD 560
million investment in the largely government-owned
poultry industry. End Summary.

The GOB Plan to Prevent AI
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2. (U) Belarus remains untouched by AI, although many
surrounding countries have reported bird flu cases
(i.e., Poland, Ukraine, Russia). Some GOB health
officials, worried the upcoming spring bird migrations
could introduce the virus, devised a plan approved by
the GOB on March 24. The plan coordinates the actions
of all GOB agencies, ministries, and oblast and city
governments to prevent the spread of the virus should it
appear in Belarus. Located in Russian on the Republican
Center of Hygiene and Epidemiology's website
www.rcheph.by/epid/profil/profilnov.html, the plan is
divided into ten sections:


1. Preventing bird flu from entering Belarus

2. Measures to warn of infection from migrating birds

3. Measures of protection of domestic/yard birds

4. Measures of protection for poultry industries

5. Sanitary/hygienic veterinary measures during the
sale of live birds

6. Sanitary/hygienic veterinary measures during the
sale of poultry products

7. Measures to protect the human population

8. Measures during the infection of domestic/yard birds

9. Measures during infections at poultry industries

10. Medical-diagnostic measures during infection among
people

Poultry and Feed Import Ban
--------------


3. (U) The GOB has banned poultry product imports from
countries with reported cases of AI. These countries
include China, Vietnam, Romania, Russia, Turkey, Iran,
Hungary, Greece, Mongolia and Kazakhstan. However, the GOB
also reportedly banned U.S. poultry products. [Note: No
reason was given for banning U.S. poultry. Post attempted
to contact the Ministry of Agriculture to confirm whether
this ban in fact exists and for what reasons, but we
received no response. On January 10, state media accused
the U.S. of creating and spreading AI, SARS, and mad cow
disease to destroy foreign markets.] The bans are strict, as
news sources report that border guards often turn vehicles
away should they be carrying raw meat, eggs, and unlabeled
meat snacks. In January alone, border guards refused entry
to 600 cars smuggling over 36 tons of meat and poultry
products into the country. In addition to the poultry ban,
the GOB on March 15 banned the import of animal feed and
fodder from countries affected by bird flu.

Tougher Packaging Laws
--------------


4. (U) Beginning on January 10, poultry products in
Belarus were to be sold in properly labeled packages
that gave the address of the producer and confirmed the
product was tested by the veterinary service. Deputy
Minister of Health Mikhail Rimzha said the rule would
make it difficult to sell illegal products and assure
buyers that poultry was safe. In addition, government
sanitary agencies were required to regularly inspect
poultry farms and stores.

Domestic Birds Not to Run Free
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5. (U) On March 1, the GOB issued a directive ordering
people to keep their domestic birds and chicken in their
yards and not allow them to roam freely. Local
authorities are to enforce this law with fines and/or
confiscation of animals. Employees of large poultry
farms are not allowed to own any poultry at home.

Mass Vaccination of Domestic Birds
--------------


6. (U) The GOB on March 6 announced plans to purchase
six million vaccine doses at USD 32 per 1,000 doses from
Latvia. The vaccines were to be used to vaccinate
poultry belonging to independent homesteads located
within three kilometers of bodies of water. Meanwhile,
the Research and Development Epidemiology and
Microbiology Institute of the Ministry of Health has
been working on its own human vaccine against the bird
flu.

President Denies Seriousness of AI
--------------


7. (U) On March 10, President Aleksandr Lukashenko told
reporters he doubted the threat of bird flu and opined
that the danger to Belarusians was limited. According
to Lukashenko, the idea of bird flu was no more than
"idle talk" and a "commercial problem" than it was a
threat.

GOB Increases Poultry Production During Flu Season
-------------- --------------


8. (U) While dozens of countries are culling poultry
flocks within the area of AI outbreaks, AI-free Belarus
is increasing its poultry numbers. On March 30, the
Ministry of Agriculture announced its new five-year plan
to spend USD 560 million to increase egg production four
percent annually to 3.5 billion tons by 2010 and
increase poultry meat production 70 percent to 250,000
tons. In February, President Aleksandr Lukashenko
issued a two-year duty on poultry imports, amounting to
0.45 euro per kilogram in addition to the already-in-
effect 0.2-euro tariff on imported poultry meat. The
five-year plan, the import bans, and the new import
tariffs are seen as measures to protect Belarus' poultry
industry, 87 percent of which is controlled by the state-
owned poultry production company Belptitseprom.

Comment
--------------


9. (SBU) Belarus is one of the last remaining countries
in Eastern Europe not yet affected by AI, although
Belarus is an important rest stop for migrating birds.
The GOB plan to prevent and combat an epidemic seems
adequate on paper, but Post cannot determine the GOB's
ability to quickly determine, isolate, and/or report an
outbreak should it occur. Although the President played
down the threat of AI, the GOB used it as a legitimate
excuse to limit the import of poultry products and
subsequently eliminate most competition. Moreover,
given the Lukashenko government's considerable
investment in the national poultry industry, we are
somewhat skeptical about the GOB's honesty in reporting
AI should it appear in Belarus. That said, we do not
have reason to suspect reported cases of AI have
occurred but not been made public.

KROL