Another point of tension the swine sector

Without any scientific certainty about the behaviour of the new virus influenza H1N1, the political authorities in most countries go to view in the management of this new global health crisis. World of the Health Organization (who) has identified Monday the alert level from 3 to 4 on a scale of 6, considering even yesterday to 5 among the 65 cases reported yesterday evening the American authorities, a local home was confirmed. This would mean that the disease is transmitted independently outside the Mexico first outbreak of infection with 152 dead even if only 26 cases proved , there was another separate outbreak and that the pandemic is not only imminent but largely inevitable. Yesterday, the number two of the Organization, Dr Keiji Fukuda, announced that the alert level was maintained at the level 4, not without judging the situation "very serious". In any case, "it is crucial to identify travellers infected by swine flu, because it helps us to monitor the virus in the world," he added. Party in March of the Mexico, this mutated H1N1 virus has already been of non-fatal human cases in the United States, to the Canada, in Spain, in the UK, Israel, New Zealand. But until now, these individuals or their close returned from Mexico. For several days, experts phosphorent permanently, but doubts are legion. WHO, which has identified 79 confirmed cases in the world, thus admits did not understand why the virus kills the Mexico and not in the United States, and ignore any future developments of the H1N1.

In this context, the political authorities are struggling to set a course of action. Witness, the Commissioner for health, Androulla Vassiliou, returned yesterday to its recommendation of the previous day to restrict travel to infected countries. "For now, I see no reason to restrict travel", she said. But everything can still change since the twenty-seven European Ministers should meet tomorrow at Luxembourg in emergency on the subject. But the Italy, the United Kingdom, the France, the Belgium, the Germany, the Austria and the Netherlands did not continue in to discourage travel to the Mexico. Cuba yesterday suspended all flights to the country.

20 suspected cases in France

The number of confirmed cases is number 3 in Europe (2 in Scotland, 1 in Spain) but the number of suspected cases is constantly evolving. In France, 20 suspected cases are "under investigation", on a total of 107 people returned from the Mexico since April 25. Two cases in Ile-de-France were reported probable yesterday evening, according to the Institute for sanitary watch.

Another point of tension, the swine sector. Now, it proved that the virus is transmitted from man to man but there is no indication that this new strain has directly transmitted to man by pigs. Androulla Vassiliou is therefore not recommended discontinuation of the imports of pork from countries infected.

We know already that this health crisis will also have an economic cost, but "it is too early to try to arrive at an accurate estimate of the global impact", said Phil Hay, the World Bank. The decision of many countries including China, the Japan, the Indonesia and the Russia, to suspend imports of pork from the Mexico and several American States, is beginning to make waves. The U.S. Representative for trade, Ron Kirk, has called the partners in the United States to not do so without scientific evidence. Behind the health crisis, a new trade battle looms.