Representative Asks for IPR to be Addressed in TPP Talks
During a House Appropriations Subcommittee hearing on March 1, 2011, Representative Manzullo (R) urged Secretary of State Clinton and others in the Administration to demand strong intellectual property protections in the multilateral trade agreement the U.S. is negotiating with several Asia-Pacific nations (i.e., the Trans-Pacific Partnership (TPP) free trade agreement).
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Manzullo led a Congressional delegation to New Zealand and Australia last week to help negotiate the TPP FTA. During recent talks, Manzullo and his colleagues expressed serious concerns with proposals by some negotiating partners to eliminate the patentability of software and weaken trademark protection for certain products, as well as the absence of robust investor-state dispute settlement mechanisms to protect American investors. According to Manzullo, Secretary Clinton promised to work with him to ensure these topics are addressed in future negotiations.