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 settlement mechanism.

Developed countries were required to fully implement TRIPS as of January 1, 1996, while developing countries were given a transition period – until January 1, 2000 – to implement the Agreement's provisions. Ensuring that developing countries are in full compliance with the Agreement now that this transition period has come to an end is one of this Administration's highest priorities with respect to intellectual property rights. With respect to least developed countries, and with respect to the protection of pharmaceuticals and agriculture chemicals in certain developing countries, even longer transitions are provided.

Progress continues to be made by developing countries toward full implementation of their TRIPS obligations. Nevertheless, certain countries are still in the process of finalizing implementing legislation and establishing adequate enforcement mechanisms. Every year the U.S. Government provides extensive technical assistance and training on the implementation of the TRIPS Agreement, as well as other international intellectual property agreements, to a large number of U.S. trading partners. Such assistance is provided by a number of U.S. Government agencies, including the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office, the U.S. Copyright Office, the State Department and the Justice Department, on a country-by-country basis, as well as in group seminars, including those co-sponsored with WIPO and the WTO. Technical assistance involves review of and drafting assistance on laws concerning intellectual property and enforcement. Training programs usually cover the substantive provisions of the TRIPS Agreement, as well as enforcement. The United States will continue to work with WTO Members and expects further progress in the near term to complete the TRIPS implementation process. However, in those instances where additional progress is not achieved in the near term, the United States will pursue our rights through WTO dispute settlement proceedings.

Controlling Optical Media Production

To address existing and prevent future piratical activity, over the past year some of our trading partners, such as Malaysia and Taiwan, have taken important steps toward implementing, or have committed to adopt, much needed controls on optical media production. We await news of aggressive enforcement of these laws. However, others that are in urgent need of such controls, including Ukraine, Thailand, Indonesia, Pakistan, the Philippines, and Russia, and have not made sufficient progress in this regard.

Governments such as those of China, Hong Kong and Macau that implemented optical media controls in previous years have clearly demonstrated their commitment to continue to enforce these measures. The effectiveness of such measures is underscored by the direct experience of these governments in successfully reducing pirate production of optical media. We continue to urge our trading partners facing the challenge of pirate optical media production within their borders, or the threat of such production developing, to adopt similar controls, or aggressively enforce existing regulations, in the coming year. USTR is concerned, however, about recent reports of increased piracy and counterfeiting in Bulgaria, which had been a model in its region for taking the necessary steps to tackle