Locke Touches On IP In Russia
Commerce Secretary Gary Locke, the only Cabinet secretary to join President Obama on his trip this week to Russia, stressed the need to combat intellectual property piracy and counterfeiting with Russian Minister of Economic Development Elvira Nabiullina, although the issue took a backseat to broader issues. "IP is on the agenda, but I wouldn't want to exaggerate its importance in these talks," a senior Commerce official traveling with Locke said Tuesday. Topics like Russia's accession to the World Trade Organization, larger rule of law questions surrounding government transparency and import tariffs, and climate change were prioritized. But in same-day remarks at a business summit, Locke lauded Russia's recruitment of U.S. corporations like Boeing, Motorola, Microsoft, and Procter & Gamble, all of whom have a huge stake in fighting foreign and domestic IP crime. Locke said the United States and Russia must "increase the openness of our markets to trade and to investment" and during tough economic times remember to "not repeat the historic mistakes of protectionism of previous eras." Locke and Nabiullina will lead a business and economic relations working group under a bilateral commission co-chaired by Obama and Russian President Dmitry Medvedev.
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