Several Asian and European countries, including Afghanistan, Myanmar, Malaysia and Denmark, confirmed on Thursday the presence of deadly H5N1 strain of bird flu in their countries.

On the same day, a UN official who is in charge of bird flu affairs, called on the international community to step up surveillance and monitoring of the disease.

In a joint statement on Thursday, the United Nations and the Afghan Agriculture Ministry said that they confirmed the H5N1 strain of bird flu in six samples from Kabul, capital of Afghanistan, and the eastern city of Jalalabad.

The statement also stressed that "thus far in Afghanistan, avian influenza remains confined to the bird population, with no human cases reported."

The UN Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) said on Thursday that the test results had confirmed that the H5N1 virus was found by Myanmar in dead chickens several days ago in the central town of Mandalay.

Local media reported that Myanmar had carried out preventative measures, slaughtered more than 10,000 chickens and quarantined over 40 farms near Mandalay.

Malaysian Agriculture Minister Muhyiddin Yassin said on Thursday that Malaysia announced a new outbreak of the H5N1 strain in an eco-park and a village in the northern state of Perak.

He said that Malaysia had adopted emergency measures to control the spread of the disease.

The Danish government also issued a statement on Thursday that the preliminary test results confirmed Denmark's detection of its first case of this deadly variant in a wild buzzard found dead on the island of Zealand.

After meeting with the European Union officials in Brussels, David Nabarro, a senior UN coordinator for bird flu, told reporters that the international community should watch out for a global spread of the disease. Nabarro urged increased investment to enhance the bird flu prevention and control efforts.

Nabarro's call came as various affected countries are taking urgent measures to fight the devastating bird flu.

India began on Thursday to cull thousands of chickens in bird flu-hit Jalgaon region in the western state of Maharashtra to contain the spread of the disease.

Nigeria is stepping up surveillance and monitoring of the epidemic and upgrading the capacity of relevant laboratory facilities, Information Minister Frank Nweke said on Thursday, as poultry farmers estimated a loss of US$100 million in revenue inflicted the deadly virus.

Georgia ordered the immediate slaughter of poultry in affected areas after the virus was found in the blood of swans found dead near the village of Adlia in the Khelvachauri district of the Black Sea coastal region of Adjara on Feb. 24.

In Europe, the Netherlands started vaccinating poultry against bird flu until the end of June, the agriculture ministry said, following a similar program in France.

The Swiss pharmaceutical giant Roche announced it was raising its annual production of Tamiflu, the anti-flu drug, to help head off a potential pandemic.

The highly pathogenic H5N1 strain has killed about 100 people in seven countries since 2003. Scientists fear the virus might cause a global pandemic if it mutates and becomes easily transmissible between humans.

(Xinhua News Agency March 17, 2006)