The Mongolian government has confirmed equine influenza, a disease that mainly affects horses, broke out in 14 provinces.

The government´s news office announced the confirmation Tuesday after suspected cases were recently discovered in 18 provinces of the country, where horses still play a key role.

According to a Mongolian government report, Mongolian Vice Premier M. Enkhbold called a state emergency situation committee meeting on Monday to respond to the epidemic.

Millions of horses will need to be vaccinated, given cases of the disease have been discovered in all but three provinces -- Bayan-Ulgii, Zavkhan and Umnugobi.

Equine influenza usually broke out in spring and fall, said an official of the Mongolian veterinarian and breeding bureau. He urged vaccination to be carried out as soon as possible.

Mongolia has experienced several equine influenza outbreaks in the past few decades. Outbreaks in Khovd province in 2007 and 2008 caused huge losses to the local livestock industry.

Animal husbandry is a dominant factor in the agriculture sector of Mongolia, which has more than 40 million livestock, 2 million of which are horses.