recordings. Additionally, Uzbekistan should provide additional resources to the Agency for Intellectual Property and other enforcement agencies in addition to granting ex officio authority to customs and criminal law enforcement officials in order to initiate investigations and enforcement actions, including at the border. Uzbekistan also lacks deterrent-level penalties for IPR infringement. The United States will continue to engage with Uzbekistan on these matters.
Near East
Egypt
Egypt remains on the Watch List in 2015. Although Egypt continues to improve its border and customs controls, continuing IPR enforcement challenges remain, including the failure to issue deterrent-level sentences for IPR violations and the need for additional training for enforcement officials. Egypt has not issued regulations to clarify border procedures for the destruction of counterfeit and pirated products and to provide customs officials with the authority to take ex officio action. Egypt is continuing to upgrade its trademark database system for use in detecting and preventing the import, export, and transshipment of counterfeit goods. However, rights holders have expressed concerns about the registration of trademarks filed in bad faith. The United States urges Egypt to clarify its protection against the unfair commercial use, as well as unauthorized disclosure, of undisclosed test or other data generated to obtain marketing approval of pharmaceutical products. The United States appreciates Egypt's recent engagement on many of these and other IPR issues and stands ready to work with Egypt to improve its IPR regime.
Lebanon
Lebanon remains on the Watch List in 2015. The United States encourages Lebanon to continue its progress on pending IPR legislative reforms, including with respect to new draft laws (concerning trademark, geographical indications, and industrial designs) as well as amendments to Lebanon's copyright and patent laws. The United States notes that the enactment of revisions in 2015 to the copyright law would pave the way for ratification of the two WIPO Internet Treaties. The United States also encourages ratification and implementation of the latest acts of several IPR framework treaties, including the Paris Convention for the Protection of Industrial Property, the Berne Convention for the Protection of Literary and Artistic Works, the Nice Agreement, and the Madrid Agreement on False or Deceptive Indications of Source on Goods. In addition, the United States encourages Lebanon to ratify and implement the Singapore Treaty on the Law of Trademarks, and join the Patent Cooperation Treaty and the Madrid Protocol. The United States continues to stress the importance of Lebanon providing its Cyber Crime and Intellectual Property Rights Bureau and Customs with ex officio enforcement authority and its enforcement authorities with adequate resources to carry out their enforcement functions. The United States welcomes the continued efforts of the Ministry of Economy and Trade's Intellectual Property Protection Office to bolster its administration and enforcement capacity for intellectual property rights protection, and urges the commitment of additional resources to
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