COMMISSION DECISION of 16 February 1996 concerning animal health conditions and veterinary certificates for the importation of domestic animals of the bovine and porcine species from the Slovak Republic (Text with EEA relevance) (96/185/EC)
THE COMMISSION OF THE EUROPEAN COMMUNITIES,
Having regard to the Treaty establishing the European Community,
Having regard to Council Directive 72/462/EEC of 12 December 1972 on health and veterinary inspection problems upon importation of bovine, ovine and caprine animals and swine, fresh meat or meat products from third countries (1), as last amended by the Act of Accession of Austria, Finland and Sweden, and in particular Articles 8 and 11 thereof,
Whereas Commission Decision 92/324/EEC (2) of 10 June 1992 establishes the animal health conditions and veterinary certificates for the import of domestic animals of the bovine and porcine species from Czechoslovakia;
Whereas following partition of this country and revocation of the abovementioned Decision by Commission Decision 96/186/EC (3), it is necessary to lay down animal health conditions and veterinary certificates for importation of domestic animals of the bovine and porcine species from the Slovak Republic;
Whereas Member States shall import domestic animals of the bovine and porcine species in accordance with the provisions of Council Directive 91/496/EEC (4), as last amended by the Act of Accession of Austria, Finland and Sweden, which lays down the principles governing the organization of veterinary checks on animals entering the Community from third countries; and in accordance with the provisions of Commission Decision 93/242/EEC (5), as last amended by Decision 95/295/EC (6);
Whereas the geographical proximity of the Slovak Republic to the Community has implications for trade in live animals;
Whereas following Community veterinary missions it appears that the animal health situation in the Slovak Republic is controlled by veterinary services which, although currently in the process of re-organization, can nevertheless offer satisfactory guarantees concerning diseases which might be transmitted through the importation of domestic animals of the bovine or porcine species;
Whereas the responsible veterinary authorities of the Slovak Republic have confirmed that the Slovak Republic has during the last 24 months been free from foot-and-mouth disease and during the last 12 months been free from rinderpest, contagious bovine pleuro-pneumonia, vesicular stomatitis, bluetongue, African swine fever, porcine enteroviral encephalomyelitis (Teschen disease), swine vesicular disease and vesicular exanthema and that no vaccinations have been carried out against any of those diseases during the past 12 months;
Whereas the responsible veterinary authorities of the Slovak Republic have undertaken to notify the Commission of the European Communities and the Member States, by telex or telefax, within 24 hours, of the confirmation of the occurrence of any of the abovementioned diseases and classical swine fever or of the adoption of vaccination against any of them or, within an appropriate period, of any proposed changes in the Slovakian import rules concerning bovine animals or swine or the semen or embryos thereof;
Whereas bovine tuberculosis and brucellosis have been eradicated from the Slovak Republic, whereas vaccination against bovine brucellosis is not permitted and whereas the measures taken by the responsible authorities of the Slovak Republic to prevent a recrudescence of these diseases are sufficient to equate the status of their herds, other than those under official restriction, with that of herds in the European Community having the status of Officially Tuberculosis Free or Officially Brucellosis Free;
Whereas the responsible veterinary authorities of the Slovak Republic have undertaken to supervise officially the issue of certificates arising from this Decision and to ensure that all relevant certificates, declarations and statements on which export certification may have been based remain on official file for at least 12 months following the dispatch of the animals to which they refer;
Whereas the responsible veterinary authorities of the Slovak Republic have undertaken not to permit the issue of the certificates described in the Annexes to this Decision in respect of animals which have been imported unless such animals were imported in accordance with veterinary conditions at least as strict as the relevant requirement of Directive 72/462/EEC, including any subsidiary decisions;
Whereas the measures provided for in this Decision are in accordance with the opinion of the Standing Veterinary Committee,
HAS ADOPTED THIS DECISION:
Article 1
1. Without prejudice to Decision 93/242/EEC and to paragraphs 2 and 4 of this Article, Member States shall authorize the importation from the Slovak Republic of the following animals:
(a) domestic animals of the bovine species for breeding or production which meet the requirements set out in the health certificate in Annex A to this Decision and which are accompanied by such a certificate;
(b) domestic animals of the bovine species for slaughter which meet the requirements set out in the health certificate in Annex B to this Decision and which are accompanied by such a certificate; and, from a date to be decided according to the procedure laid down in Article 29 of Council Directive 72/462/EEC, but not earlier than 12 months after the date on which vaccination against classical swine fever has been officially prohibited in the Slovak Republic;
(c) domestic animals of the porcine species for breeding or production which meet the requirements set out in the health certificate in Annex C to this Decision and which are accompanied by such a certificate;
and
(d) domestic animals of the porcine species for slaughter which meet the requirements set out in the health certificate in Annex D to this Decision and which are accompanied by such a certificate.
2. Member States shall authorize the importation from the Slovak Republic of the domestic animals of the bovine or porcine species indicated in paragraph 1 which have been imported into the Slovak Republic only if such animals were imported from the Community or from a third country included in the list annexed to Council Decision 79/542/EEC (7), as last amended by Commission Decision 95/322/EC (8), in so far as it covers domestic animals of these species and only if the importation was made in accordance with veterinary conditions at least as strict as the requirements of Chapter II of Directive 72/462/EEC, including any subsidiary Decisions.
3. Member States shall require that animals which are submitted to tests in application of this Decision are continuously isolated under conditions approved by an official veterinarian of the Slovak Republic from all cloven-hoofed animals not intended for export to the Community or not of equivalent health status to such animals from the time of the first of such tests to the time of loading.
4. Member States shall permit the entry onto their territory from the Slovak Republic of bovine animals only if such animals:
(a) come from herds declared by the veterinary authorities of the Slovak Republic to be enzootic bovine leukosis free as defined in Annex E to this Decision and have been subjected, within 30 days before export and with negative result, to an individual test for enzootic bovine leukosis carried out according to the protocol in Annex I to Commission Decision 91/189/EEC (9);
or
(b) are intended for meat production, are not more than 30 months of age, come from herds which are included in a national programme for the eradication of enzootic bovine leukosis and in which there has been no evidence whatever of that disease for at least 2 years and are permanently marked as described in Annex F to this Decision;
or
(c) come from herds which are included in a national programme for the eradication of enzootic bovine leukosis, are consigned directly to a slaughterhouse and are slaughtered within five working days of their arrival there.
In the case of the animals referred to at (b) and (c) above, Member States shall ensure, by inspection, that such animals are clearly identified, shall supervise them until slaughter and shall take all measures to prevent contamination of indigenous herds.
5. Member States shall make the introduction onto their territory of bovine or porcine animals from the Slovak Republic subject to the following condition:
- a guarantee that the animals to be imported have not been vaccinated against foot-and-mouth disease.
6. Member States shall make the introduction onto their territory of pigs from the Slovak Republic subject to a guarantee that they have not been vaccinated against classical swine fever and, in the case of pigs intended for breeding or production, a guarantee that they have shown a negative result to a test for the antibody produced by the virus of classical swine fever.
Article 2
Pending the entry into force of any measures adopted by the European Community for the eradication, prevention or control of a contagious or infectious bovine or porcine disease other than rabies, tuberculosis, brucellosis, foot-and-mouth disease, anthrax, rinderpest, contagious bovine pleuro-pneumonia, enzootic bovine leukosis, porcine enteroviral encephalomyelitis (Teschen disease), classical swine fever, African swine fever or swine vesicular disease, Member States may apply in respect of animals imported from the Slovak Republic such additional health conditions as they apply to other animals within the framework of a national programme, submitted to and approved by the Commission, for the eradication, prevention or control of such disease.
Article 3
This Decision shall apply from the 30th day after its notification to the Member States.
Article 4
This Decision is addressed to the Member States.
Done at Brussels, 16 February 1996.