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Latvian Agriculture Minister Armands Krauze has sent a letter to European Commissioner for Health and Animal Welfare Olivér Várhelyi, calling for consideration of at least a temporary ban on the commercial import of dogs and cats into the EU from Russia and Belarus.
The appeal follows a case of rabies identified in February in Germany in a dog imported from Russia through a border checkpoint in Latvia. Despite accompanying documents confirming compliance with EU requirements, laboratory tests for rabies antibodies showed inconsistent results in 20% of cases. The ministry expressed concern about the systematic falsification of such documents in Russia and Belarus.
“The EU has invested significant resources in combating rabies, and many member states have achieved and maintained rabies-free status, including Latvia. We must not allow these disease control measures to be undermined by violations of legislation and insufficient oversight in Russia and Belarus. If there are doubts about the reliability of veterinary documents and the effectiveness of vaccination, the EU must act quickly and decisively — indecision may seriously affect the health of people and animals, and even lives in EU member states. A temporary ban on the commercial import of dogs and cats from Russia and Belarus would be an important preventive measure to protect both animal and public health across the EU,” the minister said, as quoted by the ministry’s press service.
Krauze also called for a meeting of veterinary experts from EU countries to assess the situation and develop effective measures to reduce the risk of rabies spreading.