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Initiatives to Strengthen IPR Protection and Enforcement Internationally
The United States has worked to promote adequate and effective protection and enforcement of IPR through a variety of mechanisms, including the following:
- Trans-Pacific Partnership: The Trans-Pacific Partnership is a key initiative through which the United States seeks to advance the multi-faceted U.S. trade and investment interests in the Asia-Pacific region by negotiating an ambitious, 21st-century regional trade agreement along with Australia, Brunei Darussalam, Chile, Malaysia, New Zealand, Peru, Singapore, and Vietnam. The Trans-Pacific Partnership negotiations have begun with this initial group of like-minded countries with the goal of creating a platform for integration across the region. The Trans-Pacific Partnership will include strong standards for the protection and enforcement of IPR in the 21st Century.
- Anti-Counterfeiting Trade Agreement (ACTA): Australia, Canada, the European Union (EU) and 22 of its Member States, Japan, Korea, Morocco, New Zealand, and Singapore, along with the United States, signed the ACTA, an important new tool to fight trademark counterfeiting and copyright piracy. The ACTA is the first IPR agreement to make clear that it will be implemented in a way that preserves freedom of expression, fair process, and privacy. The Agreement will also contribute to protecting the public against threats posed by unsafe counterfeit goods, such as toothpaste with diethylene glycol and auto parts of unknown quality. A number of signatories are now undertaking the necessary domestic processes in order to deposit instruments of acceptance. The United States looks forward to the remaining original negotiating parties signing the ACTA as well.
- World Trade Organization (WTO): The multilateral structure of WTO agreements provides opportunities for USTR to lead engagement with trading partners on IPR issues in several contexts, including through accession negotiations for prospective Members, the Council for Trade-Related Aspects of Intellectual Property Rights (TRIPS Council), and WTO's Dispute Settlement Body.
- Bilateral and Regional Initiatives: The United States works with many trading partners to strengthen IPR protection and enforcement through the provisions of bilateral and regional agreements, including free trade agreements (FTAs). In addition, Trade and Investment Framework Agreements (TIFAs) between the United States and numerous trading partners around the world have facilitated discussions on enhancing IPR protection and enforcement.
- Trade Preference Program Reviews: USTR reviews IPR practices in connection with the implementation of trade preference programs, such as the Generalized System of Preferences (GSP) program, and regional programs including the Caribbean Basin Economic Recovery Act. USTR will continue to review IPR practices in Russia, Lebanon, and Uzbekistan under ongoing GSP reviews. In December 2011, USTR received new country practice petitions related to IPR in Ukraine and Indonesia.
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