The explanatory meeting on the harmonization of the national legislation of Ukraine and the Republic of Moldova with the acquis of the European Union was held on March 15, 2024, in Brussels, Belgium, organized by the Directorate-General for Neighborhood and Enlargement Negotiations (DG NEAR) of the European Commission.

The main purpose of this explanatory meeting was to present the relevant European acquis in the field of intellectual property and to present the ways of implementing the commitments derived from it.

Representatives of the State Agency on Intellectual Property (AGEPI), as the coordinating institution of Sectoral Working Group 7 “Intellectual Property Law”, involved in ensuring the implementation of the Mechanism of Coordinating Process of Republic of Moldova’s Accession to the European Union also participated in person in the event on the part of the Republic of Moldova, together with representatives of other public authorities relevant to the discussed field, who participated online, such as those from the Customs Service, the Legislation Harmonization Centre, the Parliament of the Republic of Moldova, etc.

The representatives of the Republic of Moldova highlighted the progress in aligning national legislation with EU standards in the field of intellectual property.

Recent achievements include:

• Adoption of the Law on Copyright and Related Rights in 2022, which ensures the transposition of the most important European directives in the field, thus strengthening the protection of the rights of authors and holders of copyright and related rights.
• Adoption of the Law on the Protection of Trade Secrets in 2023, which fully transposes into national legislation Directive (EU) 2016/943 and the Law amending the Law on the Protection of Inventions, which improved the compulsory license granting mechanism.
• Elaboration and promotion of the Law on Trademarks in 2023, (adopted in the second reading on February 15, 2024), which fully transposes Directive (EU) 2015/2436 and partly Regulation (EU) 2017/1001.

It was also highlighted that the Republic of Moldova is committed to continuing the process of harmonizing national legislation with the European acquis, focusing on aspects such as the system of collective management of copyright and related rights, which would ensure the facilitation of an open and constructive dialogue between different interested parties in this segment, as well as the system of protection of industrial designs, geographical indications, appellations of origin and other intellectual property objects.

A significant support in this endeavor comes from the EU Project “Strengthening Intellectual Property Rights in Georgia, Moldova and Ukraine”, funded by the European Union (EU), and implemented by the European Union Intellectual Property Office (EUIPO), which will be launched officially in Chisinau on March 25, 2024.

The representatives of the Republic of Moldova expressed their gratitude for the support provided by the European Commission and are committed to finding the best solutions to align with the European rigors and standards in the field of intellectual property.