Office of Policy and External Affairs: WTO Accessions

Negotiations on the accession of over 30 economies to the WTO offer the U.S. Government a major opportunity to improve intellectual property standards worldwide. These economies make up a total population of 1.6 billion, and include a number of the countries in which our intellectual property industries have experienced very significant piracy problems over the years. In each case, we require full implementation of TRIPS obligations as a condition of entry into the WTO, with the exception of least-developed countries, which may be given transition periods to implement the TRIPS Agreement.