US Trade Representative office has put Russia and China on the top of the watch list, among countries who have dismal record of of preventing the theft of copyrighted material and other intellectual property (IP).
According to its annual report, Algeria, Argentina, Canada, Chile, India, Indonesia, Israel, Pakistan, Thailand, Ukraine, and Venezuela are also on the "priority watch list".
United States Trade Representative Ron Kirk said this year’s Special 301 Report is more significant than ever in light of recent US Government data showing that IP intensive industries support as many as 40 million American jobs and up to 60 percent of US exports.
"I am pleased to congratulate the Governments of Spain and Malaysia on the progress that resulted in their removal from the Special 301 Lists," added Kirk.
"On the other hand, I call on the Government of Ukraine to address the serious concerns that have caused us to put Ukraine back on the Priority Watch List."
USTR reviewed 77 trading partners for this year’s Special 301 Report, and placed twenty-seven trading partners on the Watch List, and Paraguay in the Section 306 monitoring list.
USTR noted that Malaysia has been removed from the Watch List as it made significant strides, including passing copyright amendments that strengthen copyright protection, stepped-up IPR enforcement, and promulgated regulations to protect pharmaceutical test data.
The study cited concerns with Ukraine being moved to the Priority Watch List from the Watch List for the first time since 2007, in light of serious and growing concerns relating to counterfeiting and rampant piracy, including piracy over the Internet.
