The Eastern Interregional Main Directorate of the State Service of Ukraine for Food Safety and Consumer Protection has imposed restrictions on the import of meat products from Belgium due to the registration of bluetongue disease (ASF) in this country, the agency’s press service reports.
According to the order of the Chief State Veterinary Inspector of Ukraine dated October 13, 2023, the ban applies to the import of animals susceptible to the bluetongue virus and genetic material from them.
Bluetongue is a viral disease of ruminants (small and cattle), also called “bluetongue” or “blue tongue”. It is characterized by lesions of the mucous membranes of the mouth and nasal cavity, swelling of the tongue, swelling of the face, lesions of the extremities, and changes in skeletal muscle.
The disease spreads through insect bites, causing loss of livestock productivity and infertility. Mortality in the herd can reach 70-90%.
Belgian Defense Minister Ludivine Dedonder said that the federal government confirmed on Friday the participation of the Belgian side in training Ukrainian pilots to operate F-16 multi-role fighter aircraft.
“Along with this important contribution to the training and commissioning of fighter aircraft, our government officially expresses its support for helping to build this new capacity necessary for the modernization of the Ukrainian armed forces,” RTBF quoted the minister as saying in a communique.
According to her, Belgium is thus acting as part of the “F-16 coalition” led by the Netherlands and Denmark to train Ukrainian pilots and eventually supply combat aircraft of this type to Ukraine.
In the coming weeks, the Belgian Ministry of Defense will send three servicemen to a training center for Ukrainian F-16 pilots in Denmark, Dedonder said.
In 2024, the Belgian side will deploy two F-16B training aircraft and a unit of fifty military personnel, mainly technicians, to Denmark to maintain the fighter jets.
Four dry-cargo ships with more than 250,000 tons of food left Ukrainian ports on Wednesday, the Joint Coordination Center (JCC) reports.
According to JCC the Laskaro S vessel will deliver 62 088 tons of corn to Belgium, the Astra Perseus dry-cargo carrier will carry 55 thousand tons of corn to Spain. Vessel Geneve is going to Turkey with 32 thousand tons of wheat and 33 thousand tons of barley. Andonis dry-cargo carrier set a course for China, carrying 48 502 tons of corn and 18.7 thousand tons of sunflower meal.
It is noted that four more dry-cargo ships are heading for the ports of Ukraine.
“The total tonnage of grain and other agricultural products exported from the three Ukrainian ports is 22,747,287 tons. The total number of agreed ship movements is 1,543,” the report said.
SKC reported that “100 applications for participation in the initiative have been submitted.”
Six vessels with 223.4 thousand tons of food left Ukrainian ports on Friday, having received permission from the Joint Coordination Center (JCC).
“On October 28, six ships left Ukrainian ports, they are transporting a total of 223,430 tons of grain and other agricultural products as part of the Black Sea Grain Initiative,” the SKC said in a statement.
The ship Kavo Perdika will deliver 54,160 tons of corn to Israel, the ship Zante – 47,270 tons of rapeseed to Belgium. Dry cargo ship Asl Tia transports 39 thousand tons of sunflower meal to China, dry cargo ship Super Bayern transports 33 thousand tons of corn to Italy.
In addition, two ships Rising Eagle (25 thousand tons of wheat) and Lina (25 thousand tons of corn) are sent to Egypt.
“Grain that has arrived at its destination can be processed and then transported to other countries,” the SKC explained.
It is noted that as of October 27, the total tonnage of grain and other agricultural products exported from three Ukrainian ports is 9,239,819 tons.
“At the moment, 101 vessels have been registered for verification by the SKC, another 76 have applied to join the initiative,” the message says.
As reported, in Istanbul on July 22, with the participation of the UN, Ukraine, Turkey and Russia, two documents were signed on the creation, first, for a period of 120 days, of a corridor for the export of grain from three Ukrainian ports: Chernomorskaya, Odessa and Yuzhny. Ukraine set as its goal to export 3 million tons of agricultural products per month as part of the initiative.
AGRICULTURAL PRODUCTS, BELGIUM, CHINA, dry cargo ships, EGYPT, ISRAEL, ITALY
Ukraine and the Kingdom of Belgium have signed a Memorandum of Understanding in the field of water protection and reproduction and rational use of water resources.
According to the press service of the Ministry of Environmental Protection and Natural Resources of Ukraine on Friday, the document was signed by the Belgian Federal Science Policy Office, the Royal Belgian Institute of Natural Sciences and the Ministry of Ecology.
It is noted that by this memorandum, the Belgian side confirms its readiness to transfer the research vessel Belgica to Ukraine free of charge. The 1984 vessel is in good condition and has unique built-in equipment such as high-precision echo sounders.
“The protection of marine ecosystems is included in the ecological block of the EU-Ukraine Association Agreement, according to which our state must carry out regular marine monitoring in accordance with European standards. Now Ukraine is implementing the provisions of the EU Marine Strategy Framework Directive to gradually achieve a good environmental status of the marine environment. Thanks to the Belgian side for such assistance, which will strengthen the environmental monitoring of the Black Sea,” Minister of Environmental Protection and Natural Resources of Ukraine Roman Abramovsky said.
In addition, it is reported that scientific monitoring of fish stocks, fundamental scientific research on the high seas, geological exploration of the seabed, and so on will be carried out independent of fisheries.
“The memorandum provides for the strengthening of cooperation between Ukrainian and Belgian scientists on the joint study of the Black Sea, in particular the problem of raising the level of hydrogen sulfide. At the same time, the Belgian side invites Ukrainian specialists to join research in the North Sea,” the ministry added.
They note that in the near future, with the financial support of the EU project “EU for Improving Environmental Monitoring in the Black Sea” (EU4EMBLAS), the vessel Belgica will go to Ukraine under the Ukrainian flag.
“And in the autumn, a comprehensive monitoring of our sea areas will begin on board this vessel,” the ministry said.
Belgium is removing entry restrictions previously imposed on Ukrainian citizens as part of countering the spread of COVID-19, Ukrainian Foreign Minister Dmytro Kuleba said.
“Belgium has opened up to all types of travel for Ukrainians according to the recommendation of the EU Council. The Foreign Ministry is working to increase travel opportunities this summer,” Kuleba wrote on his Twitter on Sunday.
