17 World Trade ion

8/3/2019 17 World Trade ion

1/20

Do visit www.manmohan.caclubindia.com

Page 1

CS PROFESSIONAL

STRATEGIC MANAGEMENT ALLIANCES AND INTERNATIONAL

TRADE

WORLD TRADE ORGANISATION

1. What is the WTO?

Essentially, the WTO is a place where member governments go, to try to sort out the trade

problems they face with each other. The first step is to talk. The WTO was born out of

negotiations, and everything the WTO does is the result of negotiations. The bulk of the WTO's

current work comes from the 1986-94 negotiations called the Uruguay Round and earlier

negotiations under the General Agreement on Tariffs and Trade (GATT). The WTO is currently

the host to new negotiations, under the Doha Development Agenda launched in 2001.

Where countries have faced trade barriers and wanted them lowered, the negotiations have

helped to liberalize trade. But the WTO is not just about liberalizing trade, and in some

circumstances its rules support maintaining trade barriers for example to protect consumers

or prevent the spread of disease.

Its a set of rules At its heart are the WTO agreements, negotiated and signed by the bulk

of the worlds trading nations. These documents provide the legal ground-rules for

international commerce. They are essentially contracts, binding governments to keep theirtrade policies within agreed limits. Although negotiated and signed by governments, the goal is

to help producers of goods and services, exporters, and importers conduct their business, while

allowing governments to meet social and environmental objectives.

The systems overriding purpose is to help trade flow as freely as possible so long as there

are no undesirable side-effects because this is important for economic development and

well-being. That partly means removing obstacles. It also means ensuring that individuals,

companies and governments know what the trade rules are around the world, and giving them

the confidence that there will be no sudden changes of policy. In other words, the rules have to

be transparent and predictable.

2. What is the link between GATT and WTO?


2/20


Page 2

The WTO began life on 1 January 1995, but its trading system is half a century older. Since

1948, the General Agreement on Tariffs and Trade (GATT) had provided the rules for the

system. Over the years GATT evolved through several rounds of negotiations.

The last and largest GATT round, was the Uruguay Round which lasted from 1986 to 1994 and

led to the WTOs creation. Whereas GATT had mainly dealt with trade in goods, the WTO andits agreements now cover- besides trade in Goods: trade in Services, and in traded inventions,

creations and designs (intellectual property).

3. What are the basic Principles of the WTO?

A number of simple, fundamental principles run throughout all of the legal texts of the WTO

agreements. These principles are the foundation of the multilateral trading system:

A. Trade without discrimination:

i. Most-favoured-nation (MFN): treating others equally: Under the WTO agreements,

countries cannot normally discriminate between their trading partners. Grant a country a

special favour (such as a lower customs duty rate for one of their products) and you have to do

the same for all other WTO members.

ii. National treatment: Treating foreigners and locals equally Imported and locally-produced

goods should be treated equally at least after the foreign goods have entered the market.

The same should apply to foreign and domestic services, and to foreign and local trademarks,

copyrights and patents. This principle of national treatment (giving others the same

treatment as ones own nationals) is also found in all the three main WTO agreements (Article 3

of GATT, Article 17 GATS and Article 3 of TRIPS), although the principle is handled slightly

differently in each of these.

B. Freer trade: gradually, through negotiation

Lowering trade barriers is one of the most obvious means of encouraging trade. The barriers

concerned include customs duties (or tariffs) and measures such as import bans or quotas that

restrict quantities selectively. From time to time other issues such as red tape and exchange

rate policies have also been discussed.

C. Predictability: through binding and transparency

In the WTO, when countries agree to open their markets for goods or services, they bind their

commitments. For goods, these bindings amount to ceilings on customs tariff rates. For


3/20


Page 3

Services, bindings are done on Service sectors chosen by each country and the degree of

liberalization is controlled through the choice of mode of supply.

The system also tries to improve predictability and stability in other ways as well. One way is to

make countries trade rules as clear and public (transparent) as possible. Many WTO

agreements require governments to disclose their policies and practices publicly within the

country (publishing all trade related legislation in the official gazette) or by notifying the WTO

4. Could a WTO Member give any preferential treatment to any other Member?

Yes, this preferential treatment is possible and falls under certain exceptions to some of the

WTO principles, among which:

a.Customs Unions and Free Trade Areas: in the WTO context, regional trade agreements allow

governments to liberalize or facilitate trade sometimes through free-trade areas or customs

unions.

WTO Members are permitted to enter into such arrangements under specific conditions whichare spelled out in a set of rules (GATT and GATS article XXIV).

b. Preferential Schemes: Generalized System of Preferences (GSP): non-reciprocal preferential

agreements involve preferences that are given by developed countries to developing countries

and Least Developed Countries (LDC), in order to help them expand their exports, and thus

increase their foreign exchange earnings.

5. What are the areas covered by WTO?

The WTO Agreements cover goods, services and intellectual property.

They spell out the principles ofliberalization, and the permitted exceptions. They include individual countries commitments to lower customs tariffs and other trade

barriers, and to open and keep open services markets.

They set procedures for settling disputes. They prescribe special treatment for developing countries. They require governments to make their trade policies transparent by notifying the

WTO about laws in force and measures adopted, and through regular reports by the

secretariat on countries trade policies.

The WTO agreements also include extra agreements and annexes dealing with the special

requirements of specific sectors or issues such as the agreements on Agriculture, Safeguardsand SPS for Goods and the annexes on telecommunication and air transport for services.


4/20


Page 4

In a nutshell

The basic structure of the WTO agreements: how the six main areas fit together the umbrella

WTO Agreement, goods, services, intellectual property, disputes and trade policy reviews.

Umbrella AGREEMENT ESTABLISHING WTO

Goods Services Intellectual property

Basic principles GATT GATS TRIPS

Additional details Other goods

agreements and

annexes

Services annexes

Market access

commitments

Countries schedules

of commitments

Countries schedules of

commitments(and

MFN exemptions)

Dispute settlement DISPUTE SETTLEMENTTransparency TRADE POLICY REVIEWS

For goods (under GATT)

Agriculture

Health regulations for farm products (SPS)

Textiles and clothing

Product standards (TBT)

Investment measures

Anti-dumping measures Customs valuation methods

Preshipment inspection

Rules of origin

Import licensing

Subsidies and counter-measures

Safeguards

For services (the GATS annexes)

Movement of natural persons

Air transport

Financial services

Shipping

Telecommunications

6.How does a country become a member of the WTO?

a. Any state or customs territory having full autonomy in the conduct of its trade policiesmay join (accede to) the WTO after WTO members agree on the terms.

b. The process of accession to the WTO begins when an applicant country submits acommunication to the Director-General of the WTO expressing its desire to accede to

the WTO under Article XII. The General Council then considers the application and


5/20


Page 5

establishes a working party. The working party is chaired by a Chairperson selected after

consultations with WTO Members and the applicant.

c. The working party is charged of examining the application of the Governmentrequesting the accession to the WTO, under Article XII, and submitting to the General

Council/Ministerial Conference, recommendations which may include a draft Protocol of

Accession.

7.What are the different stages of the WTO accession?

Broadly speaking, the accession goes through 4 stages: also see accession chart

i. Submission of a Memorandum on Foreign Trade Regime (MFTR): describing all aspects of

trade and economic policies that have a bearing on WTO agreements.

ii. Questions and Answers phase (Q&A) and Working Party Meetings: Following the

circulation of the Memorandum, members of the working party ask questions in relation to it toobtain more information about the applicant's foreign trade rgime. Replies are discussed in

working Party Meetings.

iii. Bilateral Negotiations: When the working party has made sufficient progress on

principles and policies, parallel bilateral talks begin between the prospective new member and

individual countries on market access issues with respects to goods and services.

iv. Report, Protocol of Accession and Entry into Force: the working party finalizes the terms

of accession once it has completed its examination of the applicants trade regime, and the

parallel bilateral market access negotiations are achieved. These appear in a report, a draft

membership treaty (protocol of accession) and lists (schedules) of the member-to-bes

commitments.

When the Draft Report, Draft Protocol and Schedules on Goods and Services are finalized, the

working party will submit the package to the WTO General Council/Ministerial Conference for

approval. Following the decision of the General Council/Ministerial Conference to adopt the

package, the Protocol of Accession enters into force. Thirty days after acceptance by the

applicant, it becomes a WTO Member.

8.Is there a time frame for Lebanon to conclude negotiations?

There is no time frame for concluding negotiations to accede to the WTO. At this point in time,

concluding negotiations and acceding to the WTO depend on several factors that interact

together in determining the conclusion date for negotiations:


6/20


Page 6

i. Domestic Factors: A countrys readiness with respect to legislation, documentation and

offers.

ii. Bilateral Negotiations: Readiness of WTO Members to engage in bilateral talks (submitting

requests on goods and services offers).

iii. WTO Secretariat: Fitting working party meetings in the busy WTO Schedule.

iv. Multilateral Negotiations: the preoccupation of WTO member countries with concludingthe on-going multilateral negotiations (the Doha Development Agenda).

9.What are the new legislation that Lebanon is working to introduce before accession?

Lebanons legislative reforms include modernizing existing laws, minimizing restrictions and

simplifying procedures. It is to be noted that any trade related legislation introduced by a WTO

Member country or country in the process of accession must be in conformity with the relevant

WTO Agreement(s).

Lebanon is currently working on six laws which are all in the pipelines awaiting approval andenactment

Draft law on International Trade and Licensing: This draft law aims to regulate the application

of Non-Tariff Measures in Lebanon (import/export prohibitions and licenses) in accordance with

WTO agreements and principles.

Draft Law on Food: This draft law sets the general rules for producing and importing food

products. It is applied to all the stages of production (manufacturing, marketing, packing ...etc)

and calls for the establishment of a Lebanese Food Safety Authority in charge of food safety

control and inspection in Lebanon.

Draft Law on Standard, Technical Regulations and Conformity Assessment Procedures: This

draft law regulates the issuance of standards and technical regulations so that they become in

conformity with the WTO Agreement on Technical Barriers to Trade. It amends the previous law

establishing the Lebanese standardizing body (Libnor).

Draft Law on Plant Quarantine: This draft law sets the procedures and conditions for the

import and export of plant and plant products, taking into account the way of dealing with

related diseases.

Draft Law on Animal Quarantine: This draft law sets the procedures and conditions for theimport and export of animal and animal products, taking into account the way of dealing with

related diseases and prohibitions.

Law on Anti-dumping, countervailing and safeguard measures: This Draft Law aims to protect

the National Production from the unfair trade practices that may cause or threaten to cause


7/20


Page 7

material injury to the domestic industry whenever a product enters Lebanon in dumped or

subsidized prices or in huge quantities.

It sets the rules and conditions for initiating and conducting investigations and imposing Anti-

dumping, countervailing and safeguard measures.

Additional laws currently in the pipelines at the Ministry of Economy and Trade

Title Objectives

Law on competition - This draft law ensures competition and market access by

preventing anti-competitive practices and abuses of dominance,

thereby maximizing consumer welfare and promoting economic

efficiency and innovation.

Law on Metrology

- This draft law regulates the measurements (calibration)

preformed in Lebanon so that they become in conformity with

international standards.Law on Industrial Property

(Trademarks, Geographical

Indications, IndustrialDesigns,

and Unfair Competition)

- This draft law consolidates all industrial property legislation in

one specific law, and modernizes the existing system of protection.

10.Does Trade liberalization under the WTO Regime mean abolishing tariffs, in the sense that

products could enter the Lebanese market in increased quantities?

A WTO Member Country has to bind its tariffs at either the applied rates or other rates

negotiated bilaterally with other Member Countries. Liberalization does not mean abolishing

tariffs. This will not result in increased volumes of import that will cause injury since tariffs will

be maintained at the applied rates.

11.What are the tools or the trade remedies that can be used for the protection of National

Production if an injury occurs to the domestic industry after joining the WTO?

The three Trade Remedies that can be used upon injury to Domestic Industry are: Anti-

Dumping , Countervailing Measures, and Safeguard Measures.

a. Anti-dumping (against dumped imported products)


8/20


Page 8

Dumping, in general, is a situation of international price discrimination, where the priceof a product when sold in the importing country is less than the price of that product in

the market of the exporting country.

In other words, Dumping is the sale of a product for export at a price below its "normalvalue".

This definition entails a comparison between two prices, the "export price" and the"normal value" in order to determine if a product is dumped. Normal value is usually the

domestic price of the product in the exporting country.

Dumping is not the sale of a product for export at a price below that charged bydomestic producers in the importing country, nor the flood of large quantity of a certain

product in the domestic market.

b. Countervailing Measures (against subsidized imported products)

A Countervailing Measure is the measure imposed whenever a subsidized product causes

material injury or threat thereof, or material retardation of the establishment of domestic

industry.

c. Safeguard Measures (against increased importation of a product in such a way as to cause

or threaten to cause serious injury to the local industry)

A Safeguard measure is an "emergency" action with respect to increased imports of particular

product, where such imports have caused or threaten to cause serious injury to the Lebanese

domestic industry.

Such measures can consist of quantitative import restrictions (quotas or tariff quotas) or of

duty increases to higher than bound rates (tariff measures).

12. Does Lebanon have to eliminate its Export Plus program for exported agriculture

products?

The WTO Agreement on Agriculture provides exceptions for developing countries allowing

them to maintain export subsidies - not subject to reduction commitments - during the

implementation period in respect of certain marketing and transportation subsidies. Lebanons

export subsidies, part of the Export Plus Program, fall under this exception.

More information on Agriculture

13.What is GATS and what are its components?

The General Agreement on Trade in Services is the first and only set of multilateral rules

governing international trade in services. Negotiated in the Uruguay Round, it was developed in


9/20


Page 9

response to the huge growth of the services economy over the past 30 years and the greater

potential for trading services brought about by the communications revolution.

The GATS has three elements: the main text containing general obligations and disciplines;

annexes dealing with rules for specific sectors; and individual countries specific commitments

to provide access to their markets, including indications of where countries are temporarily notapplying the most-favored-nation principle of non-discrimination.

14-What are the sectors that GATS covers?

The agreement covers all internationally-traded services .It includes 11 main sectors for

example, banking, telecommunications, tourism, professional services, etc.

15-Does liberalization mean deregulation?

GATS does not require any service to be deregulated. Commitments to liberalize do not affect

governments right to set levels of quality, safety, or price, or to introduce regulations to pursue

any other policy objective they see fit. A commitment to national treatment, for example,

would only mean that the same regulations would apply to foreign suppliers as to nationals.

Governments naturally retain their right to set qualification requirements for doctors or

lawyers, and to set standards to ensure consumer health and safety. The Government may

also choose to set its level of liberalization through its choice of Modes of supply of the service.

16-How is trade in services defined according to GATS? What are the modes of supply?

GATS defines four ways (or modes) of trading services:

services supplied from one country to another (e.g. international telephone calls), officially

known as cross-border supply (in WTO jargon, mode 1)

consumers or firms making use of a service in another country (e.g. tourism), officially

consumption abroad (mode 2)

a foreign company setting up subsidiaries or branches to provide services in another country

(e.g. foreign banks setting up operations in a country), officially commercial presence (mode

3)

individuals traveling from their own country to supply services in another (e.g. fashionmodels or consultants), officially presence of natural persons (mode 4)

17-Do we have to liberalize all services sectors and how is it done?


10/20


Page 10

No, a government has the right to choose the Sectors to be liberalized and the level of

liberalization which appear in its schedule of commitments.

18- What is a country schedule of commitments in services?

The commitments appear in schedules that list the sectors being opened, the extent of

market access being given in those sectors (e.g. whether there are any restrictions on foreign

ownership), and any limitations on national treatment (whether some rights granted to local

companies will not be granted to foreign companies). So, for example, if a government commits

itself to allow foreign banks to operate in its domestic market, that is a market-access

commitment. And if the government limits the number of licenses it will issue, then that is a

market-access limitation. If it also says foreign banks are only allowed one branch while

domestic banks are allowed numerous branches, that is an exception to the national treatment

principle.

19-What are governmental services according to GATS and are they included in the

agreement?

Governmental services are defined in the agreement as those that are not supplied

commercially and do not compete with other suppliers.

These services are not subject to any GATS disciplines, they are not covered by the

negotiations, and commitments on market access and national treatment (treating foreign anddomestic companies equally) do not apply to them.

20. Whats TRIPS?

TRIPS is the WTO Agreement on Trade-Related Aspects of Intellectual Property Rights.

The Agreement negotiated in the 1986-94 Uruguay Round, introduced intellectual property

rules into the multilateral trading system for the first time.

The TRIPS Agreement is often described as one of the three pillars of the WTO, the other two

being trade in goods (the traditional domain of the GATT) and trade in services.

The TRIPS Agreement is part of the single undertaking resulting from the Uruguay Round

negotiations. That implies that the TRIPS Agreement applies to all WTO members. It also means


11/20


Page 11

that the provisions of the agreement are subject to the integrated WTO dispute settlement

mechanism which is contained in the Dispute Settlement Understanding (the Understanding

on Rules and Procedures Governing the Settlement of Disputes).

The agreement covers five broad issues:

how basic principles of the trading system and other international intellectual propertyagreements should be applied

how to give adequate protection to intellectual property rights how countries should enforce those rights adequately in their own territories how to settle disputes on intellectual property between members of the WTO special transitional arrangements during the period when the new system is being

introduced.

21. What are intellectual property rights?

Intellectual property rights can be defined as the rights given to people over the creations oftheir minds. They usually give the creator an exclusive right over the use of his/her creations for

a certain period of time.

Intellectual property rights are traditionally divided into two main categories:

Copyright and related rights: i.e. rights granted to authors of literary and artistic works,and the rights of performers, producers of phonograms, broadcasting organizations and

publishers.

Industrial property: This includes the protection of distinctive signs suchas trademarks and geographical indications, as well as inventions (protected

by patents), industrial designs and trade secrets.

For the purposes of the TRIPS Agreement, intellectual property refers to copyright and

related rights, trademarks,geographical indications, industrial designs, patents, integrated

circuit layout-designs and protection of undisclosed information.

22. What are the areas covered by TRIPS?

Copyright: The TRIPS agreement ensures that computer programs will be protected as literary

works under the Berne Convention and outlines how databases should be protected. It also

expands international copyright rules to cover rental rights. Authors of computer programs and

producers of sound recordings must have the right to prohibit the commercial rental of their

works to the public. A similar exclusive right applies to films where commercial rental has led to

widespread copying, affecting copyright-owners potential earnings from their films. The

agreement says performers must also have the right to prevent unauthorized recording,


12/20


Page 12

reproduction and broadcast of live performances (bootlegging) for no less than 50 years.

Producers of sound recordings must have the right to prevent the unauthorized reproduction of

recordings for a period of 50 years.

Trademarks: The agreement defines what types of signs must be eligible for protection as

trademarks, and what the minimum rights conferred on their owners must be. It says thatservice marks must be protected in the same way as trademarks used for goods. Marks that

have become well-known in a particular country enjoy additional protection.

Geographical indications: A place name is sometimes used to identify a product. This

geographical indication does not only say where the product was made. More importantly, it

identifies the products special characteristics, which are the result of the products origins.

Well-known examples include Champagne, Scotch, Tequila, and Roquefort cheese.

Wine and spirits makers are particularly concerned about the use of place-names to identify

products, and the TRIPS Agreement contains special provisions for these products. But the issue

is also important for other types of goods. Using the place name when the product was made

elsewhere or when it does not have the usual characteristics can mislead consumers, and it can

lead to unfair competition. The TRIPS Agreement says countries have to prevent this misuse of

place names. For wines and spirits, the agreement provides higher levels of protection, i.e. even

where there is no danger of the public being misled. Some exceptions are allowed, for example

if the name is already protected as a trademark or if it has become a generic term. For example,

cheddar now refers to a particular type of cheese not necessarily made in Cheddar, in the UK.

But any country wanting to make an exception for these reasons must be willing to negotiate

with the country which wants to protect the geographical indication in question. The

agreement provides for further negotiations in the WTO to establish a multilateral system of

notification and registration of geographical indications for wines. These are now part of the

Doha Development Agenda and they include spirits. Also debated in the WTO is whether to

negotiate extending this higher level of protection beyond wines and spirits.

Industrial designs: Under the TRIPS Agreement, industrial designs must be protected for at

least 10 years. Owners of protected designs must be able to prevent the manufacture, sale or

importation of articles bearing or embodying a design which is a copy of the protected design.

Patents: The agreement says patent protection must be available for inventions for at least 20

years. Patent protection must be available for both products and processes, in almost all fields

of technology. Governments can refuse to issue a patent for an invention if its commercial

exploitation is prohibited for reasons of public order or morality. They can also exclude

diagnostic, therapeutic and surgical methods, plants and animals (other than microorganisms),and biological processes for the production of plants or animals (other than microbiological

processes). Plant varieties, however, must be protectable by patents or by a special system

(such as the breeders rights provided in the conventions of UPOV the International Union

for the Protection of New Varieties of Plants). The agreement describes the minimum rights

that a patent owner must enjoy. But it also allows certain exceptions. A patent owner could


13/20


14/20


Page 14

licensing that abuses intellectual property rights. It also says governments must be prepared to

consult each other on controlling anti-competitive licensing.

Enforcement tough but fair: Having intellectual property laws is not enough. They have to be

enforced. The agreement says governments have to ensure that intellectual property rights can

be enforced under their laws, and that the penalties for infringement are tough enough todeter further violations. The procedures must be fair and equitable, and not unnecessarily

complicated or costly. They should not entail unreasonable time-limits or unwarranted delays.

People involved should be able to ask a court to review an administrative decision or to appeal

a lower courts ruling. The agreement describes in some detail how enforcement should be

handled, including rules for obtaining evidence, provisional measures, injunctions, damages and

other penalties. It says courts should have the right, under certain conditions, to order the

disposal or destruction of pirated or counterfeit goods. Wilful trademark counterfeiting or

copyright piracy on a commercial scale should be criminal offences. Governments should make

sure that intellectual property rights owners can receive the assistance of customs authorities

to prevent imports of counterfeit and pirated goods.

Technology transfer: Developing countries in particular, see technology transfer as part of the

bargain in which they have agreed to protect intellectual property rights. The TRIPS Agreement

includes a number of provisions on this. For example, it requires developed countries

governments to provide incentives for their companies to transfer technology to least-

developed countries.

Transition arrangements: 1, 5 or 11 years or more:When the WTO agreements took effect on 1

January 1995, developed countries were given one year to ensure that their laws and practices

conform with the TRIPS agreement. Developing countries and (under certain conditions)

transition economies were given five years, until 2000. Least-developed countries have 11years, until 2006 now extended to 2016 for pharmaceutical patents.

If a developing country did not provide product patent protection in a particular area of

technology when the TRIPS Agreement came into force (1 January 1995), it has up to 10 years

to introduce the protection. But for pharmaceutical and agricultural chemical products, the

country must accept the filing of patent applications from the beginning of the transitional

period, though the patent need not be granted until the end of this period. If the government

allows the relevant pharmaceutical or agricultural chemical to be marketed during the

transition period, it must subject to certain conditions provide an exclusive marketing

right for the product for five years, or until a product patent is granted, whichever is shorter.

Subject to certain exceptions, the general rule is that obligations in the agreement apply to

intellectual property rights that existed at the end of a countrys transition period as well as to

new ones.


15/20


Page 15

23. Does the TRIPS Agreement apply to all WTO Members?

All the WTO agreements apply to all WTO members. Each member accepts all the agreements

as a single package with a single signature making it, a single undertaking. The TRIPS

Agreement is part of that package; therefore, it applies to all WTO members.

24. What are the basic principles of TRIPS?

As in GATT and GATS, the starting point of the intellectual property agreement is basic

principles. And as in the two other agreements, non-discrimination features

prominently: national treatment (treating ones own nationals and foreigners equally),

and most-favoured-nation treatment (equal treatment for nationals of all trading partners in

the WTO). National treatment is also a key principle in other intellectual property agreements

outside the WTO.

The TRIPS Agreement has an additional important principle: intellectual property protection

should contribute to technical innovation and the transfer of technology. Both producers and

users should benefit, and economic and social welfare should be enhanced, the agreement

says.

25. Is Lebanon entitled to make use of the general transition periods?

The general transitional periods apply to the original members of the WTO, i.e. governmentsthat were members on 1 January 1995. Since the WTO came into being, a number of countries

have joined it. These countries have generally agreed in their membershipagreements (their

accession protocols) to apply the TRIPS Agreement from the date when they officially became

WTO members, without the benefit of any transition period.

26. Were intellectual property rights covered under the old GATT (GATT 1947) before the

TRIPS Agreement came into being?

Before the 198694 Uruguay Round negotiations, there was no specific agreement onintellectual property rights in the framework of the GATT multilateral trading system.

However, some principles contained in the GATT had a bearing on intellectual property

measures taken on imports or exports. (Article XX(d) of GATT).


16/20


Page 16

27. What is the relationship between the TRIPS Agreement and the pre-existing international

conventions that it refers to?

The TRIPS Agreement says WTO member countries must comply with the substantive

obligations of the main conventions of the World Intellectual Property Organization (WIPO)

the Paris Convention on industrial property, and the Berne Convention on copyright (in their

most recent versions).

With the exception of the provisions of the Berne Convention on moral rights, all the

substantive provisions of these conventions are incorporated by reference. They therefore

become obligations for WTO member countries under the TRIPS Agreement they have to

apply these main provisions, and apply them to the individuals and companies of all other WTO

members.

The TRIPS Agreement also introduces additional obligations in areas which were not addressed

in these conventions, or were thought not to be sufficiently addressed in them.

The TRIPS Agreement is therefore sometimes described as a Berne and Paris-plus Agreement.

The text of the TRIPS Agreement also makes use of the provisions of some other international

agreements on intellectual property rights:

WTO members are required to protect integrated circuit layout designs in accordancewith the provisions of theTreaty on Intellectual Property in Respect of Integrated

Circuits (IPIC Treaty) together with certain additional obligations.

The TRIPS Agreement refers to a number of provisions of the International Conventionfor the Protection of Performers, Producers of Phonograms and Broadcasting

Organizations (Rome Convention), without entailing a general requirement to comply

with the substantive provisions of that Convention.

Article 2 of the TRIPS Agreement specifies that nothing in Parts I to IV of the agreement shall

derogate from existing obligations that members may have to each other under the Paris

Convention, the Berne Convention, the Rome Convention and the Treaty on Intellectual

Property in respect of integrated circuits (did not yet enter into force).

28. Does WTO require member countries to adhere to the pre-existing international

conventions that TRIPS refers to?


17/20


Page 17

No, there is no obligation for WTO member countries to adhere to the pre-existing

international conventions that TRIPS refers to. However, member countries should apply the

provisions of these Agreements as WTO/TRIPS obligations.

29. Does Lebanon intend to adhere to any of the pre-existing international conventions that

TRIPS refers to?

Lebanon is already a Member of the following conventions: Paris Convention for the Protection of Industrial Property (London Act in 1947);

The Berne Convention for the Protection of Literary and Artistic Works (Rome Act in

1947);

The International Convention for the Protection of Performers, Producers of

Phonograms and

Broadcasting Organizations (Rome Convention, 1997).

However, Lebanon has committed itself under the EU Association Agreement and theEFTA agreement to ratify, by March 1st, 2008, the last versions of the following: The Paris Convention for the protection of industrial property (Stockholm Act)

The Berne Convention for the Protection of Literary and Artistic Works (Paris Act).

30. What is WIPO?

The World Intellectual Property Organization (WIPO) was established by a convention of14 July 1967, which entered into force in 1970. It has been a specialized agency of the

United Nations since 1974, and administers a number of international unions or treaties

in the area of intellectual property, such as the Paris and Berne Conventions.

WIPOs objectives are to promote intellectual property protection throughout the worldthrough cooperation among states and, where appropriate, in collaboration with anyother international organization.

WIPO also aims to ensure administrative cooperation among the intellectualproperty unions created by the Paris and Berne Conventions and sub-treaties

concluded by the members of the Paris Union.

31. What is the relationship between the WTO and WIPO?

An agreement on cooperation between WIPO and the WTO came into force on 1 January 1996.

The agreement provides cooperation in three main areas:

notification of, access to and translation of national laws and regulations implementation of procedures for the protection of national emblems and technical cooperation.


18/20


Page 18

32. Does the TRIPS Agreement require all Members rules on protection of intellectual

property to be identical?

No, the TRIPS Agreement covers certain minimum standards for the protection of intellectual

property rights and requires members to comply with them.

But Members may choose to implement laws which give more extensive protection than is

required in the agreement, as long as the additional protection does not contravene the

provisions of the agreement. This is why the TRIPS Agreement is sometimes described as a

minimum standards agreement.

In addition, the agreement gives members the freedom to determine the appropriate method

of implementing the provisions of the agreement within their own legal system and practice.

33. Does Lebanons intellectual property regime comply with the minimum standards of

protection set forth by the TRIPS Agreement?

According to an assessment conducted by the World Intellectual Property Organization (WIPO)

on July 2002, the Lebanese legislation on Intellectual Property complies with the requirements

of the TRIPS Agreement. However, certain elements will need to be added or further modified

in order for Lebanon to benefit from exceptions and other limitations that are allowed under

international conventions referred to by the TRIPS Agreement.

The protection of intellectual property is ensured in Lebanon via the following specific

legislation:

1. Resolution No.2385/1924 issued on January 17, 1924, amended by the law of31/1/1946, concerning theRegulations and Systems of Commercial, Industrial,Literary, Artistic and Musical Property in Lebanon.

2. Law No. 75/99 issued on April 3, 1999 concerning the Protection of Literary andArtistic Property (the Copyright Law); and Decision No. 16/2002 concerning the

implementation of Article 25 of the Copyright Law.

3. Law No. 240 issued on August 7, 2000, concerning Patents, including Protection forPlant Variety, Layout Designs of Integrated Circuits, and Undisclosed Information (the

Patent Law).

For more information about TRIPS please check the following

website:http://www.wto.org/english/tratop_e/trips_e/trips_e.htm

34. Where can we get information on WTO Member Countries and other countries in the

process of accession?

http://www.wto.org/english/thewto_e/whatis_e/tif_e/org6_e.htm


19/20


Page 19

35.Are there any specific WTO agreements dealing with food safety ,animal and plant health ,

and with product standards?

There are two specific WTO agreements dealing with food safety and animal and plant health,

and with product standards.

Technical Barriers to Trade (TBT) Agreement.

Sanitary and Phytosanitary (SPS) Agreement.

36.What are the Technical Barriers to Trade?

Technical barriers to trade generally result from the preparation, adoption and application of

different standards, technical regulations and conformity assessment procedures. If a producer

in country A wants to export to country B, he will be obliged to satisfy the technical

requirements and specifications that apply in country B, with all the financial consequences this

entails. Differences between one country and another in their technical regulations and

conformity assessment procedures may have legitimate origins such as differences in local

tastes or levels of income, as well as geographical or other factors.

37.Can a country impose TBT measures on trade in order to ensure the quality of the

products that enter its markets

Members of the WTO are not prevented from taking measures necessary to ensure the quality

of its exports, or for the protection of human, animal, and plant life or health, of the

environment, or for the prevention of deceptive practices, at the levels it considers

appropriate". But on the same time, they have to ensure that they are not applied for

protection or discrimination purposes.

Members have to notify these measures to the WTO through their enquiry point.

38.What is the difference between technical regulation and standard?

A standard is a voluntary specification or measures applied on foreign trade. That means that is

not mandatory to apply it, it has an optional aspect.

However a technical regulation is a mandatory measure or specification and if the exporter or

the importer doesnt abide by it, he will not be able to access markets.

39.What are the SPS Measures?

SPS measures are applied to protect:


20/20


Page 20

Human or animal life or heal from risks arising from additives, contaminants , toxins or

disease causing organisms in their food, beverages, feedstuffs.

Human life or health from plant or animal carried diseases.

Animal or plant life or Health from pest disease, or disease causing organisms.

The country from caused by the entry, establishment or spread of pests.

40.Can a country take necessary measures to act on trade in order to protect human, animal

or plant life or health

Members have the right to take sanitary and phytosanitary measures necessary

for the protection of human, animal and plant life or health, but they have to ensure that any

sanitary or phytosanitary measure is applied only to the extent necessary to protect human,

animal and plant life or health and not as disguised protection. In addition they have to based

on risk assessment and scientific justifications or based on international standards.

41.What is the difference between the TBT and SPS measures?

TBT Measures SPS Measures

- human disease control (unless its food safety)

- nutritional claims

- food packaging

- quality examples:

pharmaceuticals

labelling (unless related to food safety)

pesticide handling or quality

seat belts

- protect human or animal health from food-

borne risks

- protect human health from animal- or

plant-carried diseases

- protect animals and plants from pests or

diseases examples:

microbiological contamination of food

pesticide or veterinary drug residues

food additives

42.How does a member country know other countries TBT and SPS measures?

The WTO Agreements on TBT and SPS require Members to notify these measures to the WTO

through their enquiry point for transparency purposes. In addition they are obliged to answer

and provide information on any request or questions from member country concerning these

measures.

Date post:	06-Apr-2018
Category:	Documents
Upload:	simranjeet-singh
View:	223 times
Download:	0 times

17 World Trade ion

Documents