(fra kommisjonsforordningen)

(1) African swine fever is an infectious viral disease affecting kept and wild porcine animals and it can have a severe impact on the concerned animal population and the profitability of farming causing disturbance to movements of consignments of those animals and products thereof within the Union and exports of those consignments to third countries.

(2) Commission Implementing Regulation (EU) 2023/594 (2) lays down special disease control measures for African swine fever to be applied for a limited period of time by the Member States which are listed, or which have areas listed, in Annexes I and II thereto. That Implementing Regulation lays down rules, among other things, on the listing at Union level in Annex I thereto of restricted zones I, II and III following outbreaks of African swine fever, and rules on the listing at Union level in Annex II thereto of areas established as infected zone or restricted zone, comprising protection and surveillance zones, following an outbreak of that disease in a previously disease-free Member State or zone.

(3) Also, in the case of an outbreak of African swine fever in wild porcine animals in a Member State, Article 3, point (b), of Implementing Regulation (EU) 2023/594 provides for the establishment of an infected zone by the competent authority of that Member State, in accordance with Article 63 of Delegated Regulation (EU) 2020/687.

(4) Annex I to Implementing Regulation (EU) 2023/594 was last amended by Commission Implementing Regulation (EU) 2026/767 (3) following changes in the epidemiological situation as regards African swine fever in Germany, Italy, Lithuania, and Poland.

(5) Since the date of adoption of that Implementing Regulation amending Annex I to Implementing Regulation 2023/594, Germany, Italy Poland, Slovakia, and Spain have notified the Commission of new outbreaks of African swine fever in wild porcine animals as well as Italy has notified the Commission of a new outbreak in domestic pigs. At the same time, the epidemiological situation as regards African swine fever in wild porcine animals in certain areas of Germany, and the epidemiological situation as regards African swine fever in kept porcine animals in Lithuania, and Latvia, have improved.

(6) In April 2026, several outbreaks of African swine fever in wild porcine animals were observed in the State of Saxony in Germany in an area not currently listed as a restricted zone in Annex I to Implementing Regulation (EU) 2023/594. These new outbreaks of African swine fever in wild porcine animals constitute an increased level of risk, so the areas of Germany currently not listed in Annex I to Implementing Regulation (EU) 2023/594 should, therefore, now be listed as restricted zones II in Annex I to Implementing Regulation (EU) 2023/594 and the current boundaries of the restricted zone I should also be redefined to take account of that outbreak.

(7) In April 2026, an outbreak of African swine fever in a wild porcine animal was observed in the State of North Rhine-Westphalia in Germany in an area currently listed as a restricted zone II in Annex I to Implementing Regulation (EU) 2023/594, but in close proximity to an area currently listed as restricted zone I in that Annex. This new outbreak of African swine fever in a wild porcine animal constitutes an increased level of risk, so the area of Germany currently listed as a restricted zone I should, therefore, now be listed as a restricted zone II in Annex I to Implementing Regulation (EU) 2023/594, and the current boundaries of the restricted zones I and II should also be redefined to take account of that outbreak.

(8) In March 2026, an outbreak of African swine fever in a wild porcine animal was observed in the Emilia-Romagna region in Italy in an area currently listed as a restricted zone II in Annex I to Implementing Regulation (EU) 2023/594, but in close proximity to an area currently listed as restricted zones I in that Annex. This new outbreak of African swine fever in a wild porcine animal constitutes an increased level of risk, so the area of Italy currently listed as a restricted zone I should, therefore, now be listed as a restricted zone II in Annex I to Implementing Regulation (EU) 2023/594, and the current boundaries of the restricted zones I and II should also be redefined to take account of that outbreak.

(9) In April 2026, an outbreak outbreak of African swine fever in kept porcine animals were observed in the Piedmont region in Italy in an area currently listed as a restricted zone II in Annex I to Implementing Regulation (EU) 2023/594. This new outbreak of African swine fever in kept porcine animals constitutes an increased level of risk, so the area of Italy currently listed as a restricted zone II and affected by that outbreak should therefore now be listed as a restricted zone III in Annex I to Implementing Regulation (EU) 2023/594, and the current boundaries of the restricted zones II and III should also be redefined to take account of that outbreak.

(10) In March and April 2026, several outbreaks of African swine fever in wild porcine animals were observed in the Kujawsko-Pomorskie region in Poland in an area currently listed as a restricted zone II in Annex I to Implementing Regulation (EU) 2023/594, but in close proximity to an area currently listed as a restricted zone I in that Annex. These new outbreaks of African swine fever in wild porcine animals constitute an increased level of risk, so the area of Poland currently listed as a restricted zone I should, therefore, now be listed as a restricted zone II in Annex I to Implementing Regulation (EU) 2023/594, and the current boundaries of the restricted zones I and II should also be redefined to take account of those outbreaks.

(11) In April 2026, several outbreaks of African swine fever in wild porcine animals were observed in the Nitriansky and Žilinský counties in Slovakia in areas currently listed as restricted zones II in Annex I to Implementing Regulation (EU) 2023/594, but in close proximity to areas currently listed as restricted zones I in that Annex. These new outbreaks of African swine fever in wild porcine animals constitutes an increased level of risk, so the areas of Slovakia currently listed as restricted zones I should, therefore, now be listed as restricted zones II in Annex I to Implementing Regulation (EU) 2023/594, and the current boundaries of the restricted zones I and II should also be redefined to take account of those outbreaks.

(12) In April 2026, an outbreak of African swine fever in a wild porcine animal was observed in the Cataluna region in Spain in an area currently listed as a restricted zone II in Annex I to Implementing Regulation (EU) 2023/594, but in close proximity to an area currently listed as restricted zones I in that Annex. This new outbreak of African swine fever in a wild porcine animal constitutes an increased level of risk, so the area of Spain currently listed as a restricted zone I should, therefore, now be listed as a restricted zone II in Annex I to Implementing Regulation (EU) 2023/594, and the current boundaries of the restricted zones I and II should also be redefined to take account of that outbreak.

(13) On the basis of the information and justification provided by Germany, and taking into account the effectiveness of the disease control measures for African swine fever being applied by that Member State in accordance with Delegated Regulation (EU) 2020/687 for wild porcine animals in certain areas listed as restricted zones II in Annex I to Implementing Regulation (EU) 2023/594, and in particular those measures foreseen in Articles 64, 65 and 67 thereof, and in line with the risk mitigation measures for African swine fever set out in the WOAH Terrestrial Animal Health Code, certain areas in the State of Hesse and Rhineland Palatinate in Germany, currently listed as restricted zones II in Annex I to Implementing Regulation (EU) 2023/594, should now be listed instead as restricted zones I in that Annex, due to the absence of African swine fever outbreaks in kept and wild porcine animals in those restricted zones II for the past twelve months.

(14) On the basis of the information and justification provided by Germany, and taking into account the effectiveness of the disease control measures for African swine fever for wild porcine animals in certain areas listed as restricted zones I in Annex I to Implementing Regulation (EU) 2023/594, and in particular those measures foreseen in Articles 64, 65 and 67 thereof, and in line with the risk mitigation measures for African swine fever set out in the WOAH Terrestrial Animal Health Code, certain areas in the State of Hesse and Rhineland Palatinate in Germany, currently listed as restricted zones I in Annex I to Implementing Regulation (EU) 2023/594, should now be delisted from that Annex due to the absence of African swine fever outbreaks in kept and wild porcine animals in those restricted zones I for the past twelve months.

(15) On the basis of the information and justification provided by Latvia, and taking into account the effectiveness of the disease control measures being applied by that Member State in accordance with Delegated Regulation (EU) 2020/687 for African swine fever for kept porcine animals in areas listed as restricted zone III in Annex I to Implementing Regulation (EU) 2023/594, and in particular those measures foreseen in Articles 22, 25 and 40 thereof, and in line with the risk mitigation measures for African swine fever set out in the WOAH Terrestrial Animal Health Code, a part of the Augšdaugavas county in Latvia, currently listed as a restricted zone III in Annex I to Implementing Regulation (EU) 2023/594, should now be listed as a restricted zone II , due to the absence of African swine fever outbreaks in kept porcine animals in that restricted zone III for the past three months, while the disease is still present in wild porcine animals.

(16) In addition, on the basis of the information and justification provided by Lithuania, and taking into account the effectiveness of the disease control measures being applied by that Member State in accordance with Delegated Regulation (EU) 2020/687 for African swine fever for kept porcine animals in areas listed as restricted zone III in Annex I to Implementing Regulation (EU) 2023/594, and in particular those measures foreseen in Articles 22, 25 and 40 thereof, and in line with the risk mitigation measures for African swine fever set out in the WOAH Terrestrial Animal Health Code, a part of the Šiauliai county in Lithuania, currently listed as a restricted zone III in Annex I to Implementing Regulation (EU) 2023/594, should now be listed instead as a restricted zone II in that Annex, due to the absence of African swine fever outbreaks in kept porcine animals in that restricted zone III for the past three months, while the disease is still present in wild porcine animals.

(17) Accordingly, in order to take account of these recent developments in the epidemiological situation concerning African swine fever in the Union, and to proactively combat the risks associated with a further spread of that disease, the entries concerning restricted zones in Germany, Italy, Lithuania, Latvia, Poland, Slovakia, and Spain set out in Annex I to Implementing Regulation (EU) 2023/594 should be amended.

(18) As the situation as regards African swine fever is very dynamic in the Union, when demarcating these new restricted zones, account has also been taken of the epidemiological situation in areas surrounding these outbreaks.

(19) Given the urgency of the epidemiological situation in the Union as regards the serious risks of the spread of African swine fever, it is important that the amendments made by this Implementing Regulation to Annexes I and II to Implementing Regulation (EU) 2023/594 take effect as soon as possible.

(20) The measures provided for in this Regulation are in accordance with the opinion of the Standing Committee on Plants, Animals, Food and Feed,