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United States Trade Representative Robert B. Zoellick today announced the results of the 2004 "Special 301" annual review, which examined in detail the adequacy and effectiveness of intellectual property protection in approximately 85 countries.

USTR notes with disappointment Ukraine's persistent failure to take effective action against significant levels of optical media piracy and to implement intellectual property laws that provide adequate and effective protection. As a result, Ukraine will continue to be designated a Priority Foreign Country and the $75 million in sanctions imposed on Ukrainian products on January 23, 2002 will remain in place. This continued failure to protect intellectual property rights (lPR) could also jeopardize Ukraine's efforts to join the World Trade Organization (WTO) and seriously undermine its efforts to attract trade and investment. The U.S. Government continues to encourage Ukraine to combat piracy and to enact the necessary IPR laws and regulations.

Addressing weak IPR protection and enforcement in China is one of the Administration's top priorities. At the April 2004 meeting of the Joint Commission on Commerce and Trade (JCCT), the United States secured a commitment from China's Vice Premier Wu Yi that China will undertake a series of actions to significantly reduce IPR infringements throughout the country. These actions, outlined in the China section of the report, are critical in light of the rampant counterfeit and piracy problems that plague China's domestic market and the fact that China has become a leading exporter of counterfeit and pirated goods to the world. We will be monitoring implementation of these commitments closely through a Joint IPR Working Group formed through the JCCT and will assess China's progress on their commitments through an out-of-cycle review in early 2005.

The Special 301 report addresses significant concerns with respect to such trading partners as Argentina, The Bahamas, Brazil, Egypt, India, Indonesia, Israel, Korea, Kuwait, Lebanon, Pakistan, Paraguay, The Philippines, Poland, Russia, Taiwan, Thailand, and Turkey. In addition, the report notes that the United States will consider all options, including but not limited to initiation of dispute settlement consultations, in cases where countries do not appear to have implemented fully their obligations under the WTO Agreement on Trade-Related Aspects of Intellectual Property Rights (TRIPS Agreement).

In this year's review, USTR devotes special attention to the increasingly important issue of the need for significantly improved enforcement against counterfeiting and piracy, with particular emphasis on the ongoing campaign to reduce production of unauthorized copies of "optical media" products such as CDs, VCDs, DVDs, and CD-ROMs. Counterfeiting of trademarked goods is an increasing problem in many countries, including Brazil, Bulgaria, India, Indonesia, Lebanon, Mexico, Pakistan, Paraguay, The Philippines, Russia, Venezuela, and Vietnam. The issue in these and other countries ultimately is one of the foreign government's political will to effectively address piracy and counterfeiting. The annual Special 301 process and report send a message to the governments of countries where serious IP-related problems exist. In addition, USTR continues to focus on other critically important issues, including internet piracy, proper implementation of the TRIPS Agreement by developed and developing country WTO Members, and full implementation of TRIPS standards by new WTO Members at the time of their accession. USTR also continues to encourage countries to ensure that government ministries use only authorized software.