| CIPR Briefing for Embassy Representatives 28 April 2006 On April 28, 2006, CIPR held a briefing in Moscow for Embassy representatives. The briefing covered the history and background on the Part Four to the RF Civil Code, as well as the content, impact and latest political developments of the initiative. For more information on CIPR’s other activities related to Russia’s proposed Part Four of the Civil Code, please click here. The meeting was attended by Minister-Counsellors from the Embassies of Australia, Finland, Canada, Norway, as well as the U.S. Embassy, the European Commission and the Delegation of the European Commission to Russia. The Japan External Trade Organization (JETRO), U.S. Chamber of Commerce and CIPR members also attended the meeting. The event was attended by 20 representatives, 11 of them were Embassy representatives. Please find attached the agenda. The briefing demonstrated that, while the US and EC are well-informed on the issue and have already started to address it, other Embassies and their respective governments know little about the Civil Code. Therefore, the briefing was educational and informational. The Embassy representatives expressed appreciation for the information. CIPR requested that they address their respective Ambassadors, brief them on the situation and consider possible next steps. In addition, we will be continuing to provide the Embassy representatives with up-to-date information and will continue the follow-up process with them. The U.S. Embassy, represented by Pamela Quanrud, Minister-Counselor for Economic Affairs, and the European Commission provided other participants with an update of what their respective government and colleagues are doing to address this and other IPR issues with the Russian Government. On another note, the European Commission’s delegation on IPR was in Moscow this week for the first EC-Russia Dialogue on IPR. The delegation attended CIPR’s briefing today and provided information and feedback on their meetings, as well as their position on the Civil Code. The delegation, led by Mr. Luc Devigne, Head of Unit in charge of IPR, DG Trade, European Commission, met with a large group of Russian government officials, including representatives from the Ministry of Agriculture, Ministry of Internal Affairs, Federal Customs Service, Ministry of Information Technologies and Communication, Ministry of Healthcare and Social Development, Ministry of Economic Development and Trade, as well as Rospatent. CIPR briefed Mr. Devigne and his team on the Civil Code and other IPR issues in Russia prior to this meeting. Today, Mr. Devigne provided an overview of what happened at the meeting. Regarding the Civil Code, the Russian officials did not want to comment. The EC stated that they were concerned that it would jeopardize the progress that had been achieved over the last 15 years. They stated that if the law is adopted and it substantially differs from the existing IPR laws that relate to the EU-Russia bilateral trade agreement, the EU would need to review the legislation. They said that it may cause a delay in WTO accession due to the required analysis that would need to be undertaken and that the existing EU-Russia bilateral trade agreement might be voided, if the legislation significantly differs from IPR laws that were in place at the time the bilateral agreement was signed. The EC stated that they are prepared to review the document when it reaches the State Duma officially. When they asked when the submission might be, the Russian side had no answer. Other issues touched upon by at the EC-Russia Dialogue included Internet violations (www.allofmp3.com) and data exclusivity for patents (a primarily pharmaceutical industry issue). Methods and measurements of enforcement were also on the agenda, as well as border control procedures. If you would like detailed information on these issues, please feel free to contact me. The next EC-Russia Dialogue on IPR will likely be within the next 6 months. Download Briefing Agenda |
