The meeting of the Interstate Council on Legal Protection and Defense of Intellectual Property, tenth session, was held online on August 25, 2020. The event was attended by plenipotentiary representatives and representatives of intellectual property offices, as well as other authorities with responsibilities in the field of IP from the Republic of Armenia, the Republic of Belarus, the Republic of Kazakhstan, the Republic of Kyrgyzstan, the Russian Federation, the Republic of Moldova, the Republic of Uzbekistan and the Republic of Tajikistan, and also representatives of the CIS Executive Committee and the CIS Economic Commission.

Representatives of the World Intellectual Property Organization (WIPO) and the Eurasian Patent Organization (EPO) were also present at the meeting as observers.

This year, the Republic of Moldova held the presidency of the Interstate Council, being present at the event with a delegation composed of representatives of the State Agency on Intellectual Property (AGEPI), and also of the Ministry of Internal Affairs and Customs Service.

In the opening of the event, the Director General of AGEPI, Viorel Iustin, mentioned that: “It is an honor for us to hold the presidency of the Interstate Council. In today's realities, we increasingly understand the importance of intellectual property not only as an important element of the knowledge-based economy and market relations, but also as an engine that largely determines social and cultural well-being and allows us to overcome even the most difficult unforeseen circumstances, such as the COVID-19 pandemic. The Interstate Council allows us to jointly identify the best solutions to the existing problems of the functioning of the industrial property protection system.”

According to the work agenda, several topics related to the protection and enforcement of intellectual property rights (IPR) were addressed during the Interstate Council meeting. Participants in the meeting addressed a number of important aspects concerning regional cooperation in the field of IPR protection and enforcement, including the measures taken by them to combat infringements of intellectual property rights, including in the digital environment, and on the implementation of the Action Plan for the implementation of the third stage (2016 - 2020) of the Economic Development Strategy of the Commonwealth of Independent States until 2020.

The Parties exchanged information and views on the measures taken to overcome the negative consequences of the COVID-19 pandemic. At the same time, Member States discussed and took decisions on the priorities of the Council’s work in the next period, including its involvement in improving the legislative framework in the field of regional competence, and also the contribution of the Council and Member States to building IP evaluation system in the region, staff training and advanced training, etc.

Finally, Member States unanimously decided to extend the presidency of the Republic of Moldova within the Interstate Council for another mandate.

In conclusion, Viorel Iustin, Director General of AGEPI, thanked those present for their participation and confidence in extending the presidency of the Republic of Moldova in the Interstate Council for another year. “The AGEPI team will do everything necessary to justify the responsibility entrusted in such unprecedented situations,” said Viorel Iustin.

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The first meeting of the Interstate Council on Legal Protection and Defense of Intellectual Property was held in 2012 in Kyrgyzstan.

The Interstate Council was created based on the Agreement on cooperation in this field and the creation of the Interstate Council on issues of legal protection and defense of intellectual property, signed on November 19, 2010, in St. Petersburg.

The said agreement was approved by the Government Decision of the Republic of Moldova No. 442 of 16.06.2011 and was submitted to the Parliament for information.

The Interstate Council is made up of representatives of 9 signatory states to the Agreement: the Republic of Armenia, the Republic of Belarus, the Russian Federation, the Republic of Kazakhstan, the Republic of Kyrgyzstan, the Republic of Moldova, the Republic of Tajikistan, Ukraine, and the Republic of Uzbekistan.

The main purpose of the agreement is to coordinate the joint work of improving the interstate system for the protection and defense of intellectual property and counteracting the intellectual property offences.