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 : A number of the intellectual property laws, especially the patent, copyright and data protection laws, and the enforcement regime of the Russian Federation do not comply with the TRIPS Agreement or the intellectual property provisions of the U.S.-Russian Federation bilateral trade agreement signed in 1991. Despite a significant number of police raids, and commendable official efforts to improve the enforcement climate, criminal enforcement of intellectual property rights remains minimal in Russia. As a consequence, production of unauthorized music CDs and CD-ROMs containing business and entertainment software, and now VDCsVCDs [sic] and DVDs, remains serious and growing problems, as does lack of protection for well-known marks. Russia's ineffective criminal enforcement system and the lack of any border control not only have allowed the domestic market to become saturated by Ukrainian and Asian-origin pirate products, but have also resulted in the development of Russia into a major transit country for counterfeit products destined for European markets.


 * To date, Turkey has not yet addressed all of the benchmarks set out in the 1997 review. Remaining work needs to be done to enhance Turkey's copyright regime to include copyright protection for pre-existing works and sound recordings and ex parte and injunctive relief, and to include deterrent penalties and jail terms. Passage of amendments to the copyright law to address these concerns is anticipated in the near future, and we urge expeditious legislative action. With respect to enforcement, efforts have increased to curb copyright piracy, but remain ineffective.


 * Previously expressed concerns about growth of copyright piracy and lack of enforcement have been inadequately addressed. Unauthorized production and export of CDs and CD-ROMs have increased, and Ukraine has become the regional leader in production of illegal optical media discs. We urge the Government of Ukraine to address this problem on an urgent basis. If sufficient action is not taken to curb illicit production by August 1, 2000, we are prepared to designate Ukraine a Priority Foreign Country. Additional concerns are that a number of Ukraine's intellectual property laws, especially trademark, patent and copyright, fall short of compliance with the TRIPS Agreement or the 1992 U.S.-Ukraine bilateral trade agreement. It is unclear whether Ukraine protects pre-1973 works; it does not provide copyright protection for pre-existing sound recordings. In addition, criminal penalties need to be strengthened. We look to the Government of Ukraine to address these concerns expeditiously.


 * Armenia has several remaining steps to take to fulfill its intellectual property commitments under the 1992 U.S.-Armenia Trade Agreement and to make its intellectual property regime consistent with the TRIPS Agreement. These steps include: joining the Berne Convention and the Geneva Phonograms Convention; providing protection or rights to U.S. and