the problems or practices that resulted in those countries being placed on the list have been alleviated.
Kantor also noted concerns with continuing or prospective problems in Brazil, Canada, Germany, Honduras, Israel, Panama, Paraguay, Russia and Singapore, which were not included on the Special 301 lists. Kantor noted that those countries should take steps to alleviate identified problems promptly.
Kantor pointed out that many trading partners made significant progress this year in resolving longstanding problems. In February, we concluded a special 301 investigation with Brazil in which that Government demonstrated considerable leadership for the rest of the hemisphere. Kantor also mentioned the considerable progress made in reducing or eliminating longstanding problems in Hungary, Poland, Taiwan and Thailand. In addition, Colombia, Egypt, Honduras, Poland, Russia, Taiwan and Venezuela enacted new copyright, patent or trademark legislation, or strengthened their existing legislation; Korea, Thailand, Egypt, the United Arab Emirates, Italy, Mexico and Taiwan undertook significant enforcement efforts over the past year; the Andean Pact countries of South America took steps to improve protection for patents, trademarks, plant varieties and copyrights; and the United States concluded bilateral intellectual property protection agreements with Ecuador and Jamaica.
"The improvements in intellectual property protection that have taken place in many countries over the past year are a direct result of this Administration's resolve to make headway in this trade sector, which is of vital importance to U.S. interests. In addition, the conclusion of the GATT Uruguay Round has had a positive impact in breaking legislative logjams and increasing political will in countries to establish and enforce a high level of protection," Kantor stated.
Kantor also stressed that the world made great strides toward improving the institutional structure for protection of intellectual property. He referred to the implementation of the North American Free Trade Agreement, as well as the conclusion of the GATT Uruguay Round, which includes the agreement on Trade-related Aspects of Intellectual Property, or TRIPS. Kantor called for all countries to commit to early implementation of the TRIPS agreement.
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