European Union and STCU Visit to Crimea to Discuss Biosafety & Biosecurity Cooperation

29 Jan 2010 - 02 Feb 2010

On 26 January in Simferopol (Crimea), the Chairman of the Verkhovna Rada (Parliament) of the Autonomous Republic of Crimea, Anatoly Gritsenko, met with Phillipe Servais (EuropeAid Co-operation Office of European Commission) and STCU Deputy Executive Director (EU) Michel Zayet, to discuss EU-Ukrainian cooperation in the field of Biosafety and Biosecurity and more specifically the action to be conducted in Simferopol "Ukrainian Anti-Plague Station "of the Ministry of Health of Ukraine.

Also attending these meetings were the Viktor Plakida (Chairman of the Council of Ministers of Crimea), Tatyana Zvereva (Chairman of the Standing Committee of the Verkhovna Rada of Crimea on Social Affairs, Health Care and Veterans Affairs), Sergei Donici (Health Minister of Crimea), Simferopol City Mayor Gennady Babenko, and Alexander Khaytovych (head of the SU "Ukrainian Anti-Plague Station "of the Ministry of Health of Ukraine).




The discussions centered on a project to improve the bio-security at the current facility. Constructing a new facility in Simferopol and providing personnel training in the field of biological safety could be envisaged according to experts' technical advice and budget availability. DG EuropeAid has tentatively planned to allocate 3 million Euros for this project. Mr. Gritsenko said that Crimea is ready to cooperate and implement this project.

The EU-STCU delegation then visited the State Organization "Ukrainian Anti-plague Station” in Simferopol, where its experts discussed current biosecurity & biosafety problems. Afterwards, officials of the Simferopol City Administration presented a potential building site for the new facility project.