eu temperature treatment requirements for imports of processed meat products in june 2013 russia raised concerns about the eu requirement that bovine and porcine meat products be heat-treated to 80 degrees celsius and asked that the european union bring its requirements in line with international standards which only required heat-treatment to 70 degrees celsius. russia urged the european union to finalize the legislative process under way that would bring the eu requirements into line with oie recommendations. the european union noted that it was free from african swine fever asf except for one island and foot-and-mouth disease fmd both of which occur in russia. the heat-treatment requirement of 80 degrees celsius was applied to prevent the introduction of both diseases via the import of animal products. the request of russia to use heat treatment to 70 degrees celsius for a minimum of 30 minutes for previously deboned and defatted meats was in line with oie standards for the inactivation of fmd but not for asf. the european union would thus amend its measures only in the case of species that are not susceptible to asf. the process of amending the existing import rules to thereby meet the request of russia had already begun and a proposal was expected to be adopted soon. in march 2014 russia reiterated its concerns regarding the eu heat treatment regimen for meat products treated stomachs bladders and intestines obtained from domestic cattle and farmed wild cloven-hoofed animals except pigs as well as domestic shee and goats. although the european union recognized kaliningrad as a separate region in terms of veterinary concerns it authorized imports from this region only of products subject to a heat treatment of at least 80c. products from the rest of russia were prohibited other than to transit through the european union. in response to a russian request in march 2013 that the european union establish the minimum core temperature of 70c for heat treatment of such products and restore the right to export from the mainland of russia the european union only agreed to the 70c treatment for products from the kaliningrad region but required a longer exposure time than that requested. in response to a march 2014 request for the scientific justification of the eu requirements the european commission had explained that the oie terrestrial animal health code did not establish special procedures for the destruction of the asf virus in meat. consequently the european commission decided to apply the procedures in eu legislation for classical swine fever and other viral diseases i.e. 80c. russia noted that this contradicted the provisions of the oie code that defined a minimum core temperature of 70c regimen d as sufficient to inactivate classical swine fever virus. see also g sps gen 1328. the european union highlighted that the issue had been subject to intensive bilateral exchanges during recent years. imports of meat products from pigs and ruminants used to be permitted from russia since 1997 if they had been heat-treated to a minimum of 80c. the animal health situation had deteriorated in russia with classical swine fever and african swine fever spreading due to inadequate controls. russia did not apply regionalization within its territory and did not have an oie officially recognized foot and mouth disease fmd status. the european union encouraged russia to set in motion the process to regionalize major animal diseases in their territory and to seek fmd recognition from the oie. in july 2014 russia recalled that it had previously raised concerns in the june 2013 sps committee meeting about the eu requirement that bovine and porcine meat products be heat-treated to 80 degrees celsius. in 2010 the competent russian authority initiated the authorization process for exports of raw meat preparation derived from cattle pigs and poultry produced in the kaliningrad region into the european union. russia requested modified conditions of heat treatment for these products. as a