ready to prevent and to react effectively to [African swine fever] introductions into their territories for many years to come...". To stop the virus's spread, "the current scenario in the Russian Federation suggests that [prevention] should be particularly stressed at the often informal backyard level and should involve not just pig keepers, but all actors along the whole value chain—butchers, middlemen, slaughterhouses, etc. … They need to be aware of how to prevent and recognize the disease, and must understand the importance of reporting outbreaks to the national authorities … It is particularly important that [African swine fever]-free areas remain free by preventing the [re]introduction of the disease and by swiftly responding to it when it occurs". Since around 2007 to August 31, 2018, 1367 cases of ASF of domestic pigs or wild pigs were reported by veterinary department of the Rosselkhoznadzor (), a Russian federal agency that supervises over agriculture, and state media. According to official report the central and south districts were among most affected by the disease (with several occasions on the east). Many regions effectively established local quarantines some of which was ended later. In August 2012, an outbreak of African swine fever was reported in Ukraine. In June 2013, an outbreak was reported in Belarus. In January 2014, authorities announced the presence of African swine fever in Lithuania and Poland, in June 2014 in Latvia, and in July 2015 in Estonia. Estonia in July 2015 recorded its first case of African swine fever in farmed pigs in Valgamaa on the country's border with Latvia. Another case was reported same day in Viljandi county, which also borders Latvia. All the pigs were culled and their carcasses incinerated. Less than a month later, almost 15,000 farmed pigs had been culled and the country was "struggling to get rid of hundreds of tons of carcasses". The death toll was "expected to rise". Latvia in January 2017 declared African swine fever emergency in relation to outbreaks in three regions, including a pig farm in Krimulda region, that resulted in a cull of around 5,000 sows and piglets by using gas. In February, another massive pig cull was required, after an industrial-scale farm of the same company in Salaspils region was found infected, leading to a cull of about 10,000 pigs. In June 2017, the Czech Republic recorded its historically first case of African swine fever. The veterinary administration of