Pharmaceutical companies see a threat to EU security due to bacteria in Ukraine

The Ukrainian conflict threatens Europe with antibiotic-resistant "superbugs," said Henry Skinner, CEO of the AMR Action Fund, which specializes in investing in antimicrobials. His article was published on the Innovation News Network.

Since the start of hostilities in Ukraine , "antibiotic-resistant superbugs have plagued wounded soldiers and civilians at the front," the expert writes. "Now, almost four years later <...> the situation is rapidly deteriorating," he added.

The AMR Action Fund was established in 2020 by more than 20 pharmaceutical companies. Their stated goal is to develop up to four new antibiotics by 2030.

In his conclusions, Skinner relies on the results of a study conducted by Sumy State University in Ukraine, which showed that 85% of the infections they examined in wounded Ukrainian soldiers were resistant to multiple types of antibiotics. The most common pathogen is Acinetobacter baumannii, a difficult-to-treat "superbug" considered a critical threat by the World Health Organization (WHO), he writes. The same study described numerous infections caused by a strain of hypervirulent, pan-resistant Klebsiella pneumoniae.

These infections are "already killing patients in Ukraine," and their prevalence poses a threat to European healthcare systems as well. "That's why investing in antibiotic innovation is not only a healthcare priority but also a strategic imperative for strengthening Europe's defense capability," the expert believes.

According to him, the loss of effective antibiotics exposes a hidden vulnerability in Europe's collective security. The UK and Italy have already taken steps to address this problem by stimulating investment in the development of new antibiotics. And the European Union is nearing the final stage of adopting the General Pharmaceutical Regulation, which includes a system for research on antibacterial drugs, Skinner noted.

In October, the WHO published a report showing that the number of antibacterial drugs in development had fallen from 97 in 2023 to 90 in 2025, Skinner writes. Breaking this innovation gap will require billions of dollars and decades of relentless research and development, but "with new infections emerging on the battlefield and across borders," Europe risks failing to protect itself, the expert concluded.

Back in 2023, the Financial Times, citing data from researchers and experts, reported that the number of antibiotic-resistant infections was rising in European countries amid the military conflict in Ukraine. As an example, the newspaper cited a case described in August by the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. Doctors at an American military hospital in Germany, examining a wounded Ukrainian soldier, discovered he was resistant to almost all available antibiotics. However, RBC experts denied any connection between the increase in antibiotic-resistant infections in Europe and the conflict in Ukraine.

The World Health Organization calls bacterial resistance to antibiotics "one of the most serious threats to human health." They noted that antibiotic resistance can affect anyone, at any age, and in any country. At the same time, the WHO considers antibacterial resistance a natural phenomenon.

The Telegraph also notes that Ukraine has recorded an outbreak of gas gangrene, a dangerous infection previously associated primarily with World War I, with a high mortality rate. According to medical professionals, the disease is spreading rapidly due to the inability to promptly evacuate the wounded amid the active use of drones.

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