On 10 July, in Geneva, Switzerland, several delegations questioned the expediency of the existence and financing of the WIPO External Office in moscow. This was discussed within the list of decisions adopted by the WIPO Program and Budget Committee (PBC) under Agenda Item 9 for the Sixty-Fifth Series of Meetings of the Assemblies of the Member States of WIPO.
The issue of the WIPO’s external office in rf functioning and financing was widely discussed during the past meetings of the PBC and the previous WIPO Assembly last year. This year, it once again was at the centre of attention.
The WIPO Member States have yet to reach a consensus on the general assessment of all existing WIPO External Offices. When it comes to the specific office in moscow, the discussion mainly concerns its closure due to the russian war of aggression against Ukraine and the stemming actual legalisation of the violation of the intellectual property rights of stakeholders from around the world in russia. It is also discussed that the results of the whole external office’s activities in a country isolated from the world by its own aggressive actions cannot be duly assessed, making it one of the most urgent issues on the global agenda of the Organization.
The Ukrainian delegation once again emphasised that russia’s war of aggression against Ukraine continues to cause serious damage and destroy the Ukrainian nation, its cultural heritage and intellectual and creative potential. “This is confirmed in the WIPO International Bureau’s Report and certified by many international organisations, among which are several UN agencies”, – noted Bogdan Paduchak, the IP Office’s First Deputy Director.
Mr Paduchak appealed to the WIPO Member States and the WIPO Secretariat: “We again emphasise that the russian federation must face the legal consequences of all committed violations of international law and acts of oppression against the international IP community. Hence, we call for the immediate termination of financing of projects in the russian federation and emphasise that the only effective way to restore justice is the closure of the WIPO External Office in moscow.”
The Central European and Baltic States (CEBS) Group Member States – particularly the distinguished delegations of Moldova (the Group’s coordinator), Croatia, Poland, Lithuania and other countries – and the distinguished delegations of the Netherlands (on behalf of the Member States of Group B), the United States of America and the United Kingdom supported the issue’s urgency.
Member countries emphasised the non-transparent funding, the lack of adequate performance indicators for this Office, and conceptual issues regarding the possibility of the Organization’s Office location in a state that systematically violates the principles of the UN Charter.
At the same time, while the search for a formal solution continues, the delegations of the Member States emphasised that the condition of compliance with the provisions of the WIPO Rules and Procedures cannot be placed above the Mission and Vision of the WIPO, the UN Charter and the principles of morality and humanity.
“The issue of closing the WIPO Extrernal Office in moscow will remain on the Organization’s agenda, and Ukraine, together with the support of like-minded countries, will make maximum efforts for this, emphasising the already existing practice of closing the international organisations’ offices in the aggressor state, including the experience of the UN system”, said Olena Orliuk, Director of the Ukrainian IP Office.
At the Sixty-Fifth Series of Meetings of the Assemblies of the Member States of WIPO, Ukraine is represented by the Ministry of Economy of Ukraine, the Permanent Mission of Ukraine to the United Nations and other international organisations in Geneva, and representatives of the Ukrainian National Office of Intellectual Property and Innovation (Ukrainian IP Office).
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