U.S. adds Belarus, Bulgaria to intellectual property watch list

The U.S. Trade Representative's office added Belarus to an intellectual property rights watch list over its new law legalizing the unauthorized use of copyrighted works from countries sanctioning Belarus over its role in supporting Russia's war in Ukraine.

The U.S. Trade Representative's office added Belarus to an intellectual property rights watch list over its new law legalizing the unauthorized use of copyrighted works from countries sanctioning Belarus over its role in supporting Russia's war in Ukraine. USTR's 2023 Special 301 Report on U.S. trading partners intellectual property (IP) rights protections also continued last year's suspension of its review of Ukraine's IP practices, due to Russia's February 2022 invasion of its southern neighbor.

But the USTR's report added NATO ally Bulgaria to its watch list because Sofia did not sufficiently address deficiencies in its investigation of online piracy cases. The report now lists 29 countries on its watch list or priority watch list for deficiencies and violations of IP rights. Seven countries are currently on this year's priority watch list: China, Chile, Argentina, India, Indonesia, Russia and Venezuela.

USTR said that China continued to implement amendments to its Patent Law, Copyright Law and Criminal Law as agreed in a 2020 'Phase 1' trade deal with former president Donald Trump, but added "the pace of reforms aimed at IP issues slowed." "While right holders have welcomed some positive developments, they raise concerns about the adequacy and effective implementation of these measures," along with concerns about technology transfer, trade secrets and counterfeiting.

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