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 Argentina began to issue pharmaceutical patents for the first time on October 24, 2000.

In a bilateral exchange of letters following consultations, the Bahamas committed to amend its Copyright Act and regulations to narrow the scope of its compulsory licensing regime in accordance with its international obligations.

Jordan signed a Free Trade Agreement with the United States, which incorporates significantly enhanced levels of intellectual property protection in areas covered by the TRIPS Agreement.

Indonesia passed legislation on the protection of plant varieties, trade secrets, industrial design and the lay-out of integrated circuits, which are designed to comply with TRIPS requirements.

Peru established CONTRACOPIA, a public-private commission to address counterfeiting and piracy, and also created a new office of specialized intellectual property prosecutors.

Turkey enacted long-awaited amendments to its Copyright Law, with the goal of bringing Turkey into compliance with the TRIPS Agreement.

President Kim of Korea issued public orders to the Ministries of Information and Communications and the Ministry of Justice designed to strengthen their copyright enforcement efforts. </ul>

World Intellectual Property Organization (WIPO) "Internet" Treaties

The United States Government has continued to work at all levels to encourage countries to ratify and implement the WIPO Copyright Treaty and the WIPO Performances and Phonograms Treaty. These treaties provide the essential legal framework for the continued spectacular growth of e-commerce in coming years by ensuring that valuable content is fully protected from piracy on the Internet. As of April 30, 2001, of the 159 members of WIPO, 51 have signed and 24 have ratified the Copyright Treaty, and 50 have signed and 22 have ratified the Performances and Phonograms Treaty. Thirty ratifications are necessary to bring each treaty into effect. We are optimistic that these treaties will come into effect by this fall or earlier.