Russia seems to be in the grip of an HIV epidemic as millions of people have been found to be infected with the virus. Two-thirds of Europe's new HIV cases were said to be from Russia, according to a report.
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Statistics released by the WHO and the European Centre for Disease Control stated that in 2015, 153,407 new HIV cases were indentified through Europe.
Russia was found to comprise 64% of the total cases in Europe, equal to 98,177 people.
As per statistics, more than 80% of new HIV diagnoses transmitted through homosexual sex have come from Croatia in 2015 while Estonia saw less than 10% cases due to the same method of transmission.
Less than 5% of HIV cases were recorded in Belgium spread by contaminated syringes used by IV drug users. Similarly, Luxembourg reported 30% rise in new cases caused by needle usage.
It's also alarming to note that in 2014, Europe's HIV cases made up 60% of the total number of cases recorded that year.
The main mode of transmission for the spike in the number of cases was heterosexual sex in Russia and Eastern Europe, while homosexual sex was the main cause in central and western parts of the continent.
According to the latest HIV diagnosis statistics for 2015, UK was third with 6,078 new cases after Ukraine.
"HIV transmission is still a major concern in Europe," the WHO Europe report warns.
"Despite significant efforts dedicated to the prevention and control of HIV in Europe, the number of new HIV diagnoses has not declined substantially over the last decade in the western part of the region and has more than doubled in the east," the report stated further.
A new action plan is needed immediately to battle this situation and bring it under control, but implementing this plan through the continent will surely not be an easy task.
