China could face sanctions by the US and other governments if it fails to stamp out "epidemic levels" of product piracy that deprive foreign firms of potential sales of up to US$50 billion in everything from heart medicine to golf clubs, a US envoy said yesterday.
China's leaders appear committed to enforcing foreign patents and copyrights, but they have yet to stop local officials who protect pirates, said William Lash, a US assistant commerce secretary.
He said Washington is pressing Beijing to imprison violators who now are usually only fined, if they are punished at all.
China is driving a worldwide trade in pirated goods, despite signing commitments as long ago as 1995 to crack down, Lash said.
He said China far out-strips the No. 2 source, Russia, which accounts for an estimated US$1 billion in annual losses to legitimate producers.
Chinese product piracy accounts for up to US$50 billion in annual losses worldwide -- US$24 billion to US producers alone, Lash said.
"The piracy has spread, has gotten to epidemic levels, which is triggering action," Lash told reporters following meetings this week with Chinese trade and legislative officials.
The US hasn't decided what penalties it might impose, but a "growing chorus" of governments want to bring a joint complaint to the WTO, he said.
"Our Congress is looking at a lot of actions," including blocking access to US markets for some Chinese state firms and shipping lines, Lash said.
"The WTO is also an option, and that's an option that every other major manufacturing country is looking at, not just the US," he said.
China publicized the arrest in July of two Americans accused of leading a gang that sold 100,000 Chinese-made counterfeit DVDs in 25 countries.
But the US is frustrated at China's failure to prevent local officials from shielding pirates, Lash said.
A magnitude 7.8 earthquake struck off the southern coast of Mindanao in the Philippines at 7:38am today, prompting the US Tsunami Warning System to issue an alert for neighboring countries, including Taiwan. The system issued a purple alert indicating a "tsunami threat." The potential threat zone includes Taiwan, the Philippines, Papua New Guinea, Yap and Palau. Philippine authorities were assessing the damage from the quake, with the office of civil defense seeking to verifying initial reports that 15 people had been killed and 129 injured in the region, mostly from falling debris. Arlene Hollero, disaster chief of Maasim town in the Philippines' Sarangani Province,
‘GRAY ZONE’ PRESSURE: Beijing’s activities are intended to create the deceitful impression that China has jurisdiction over the area around Taiwan, the CGA said Taiwan’s rights over its territorial waters and exclusive economic zone must not be violated by any country, the Mainland Affairs Council said yesterday, adding that it will not accept any unprovoked actions. The council issued the remarks in response to the China Coast Guard conducting maritime enforcement drills near eastern Taiwan and claiming to fully exercise China’s maritime administrative law enforcement authority. The Coast Guard Administration (CGA) has been closely monitoring the situation and is taking concrete steps to defend the nation’s sovereignty and secure its waters, the council said. China has no sovereign rights over the waters off eastern
RESILIENCE: Taiwan plays a key role in semiconductors, energy, information infrastructure and advanced manufacturing, AIT Director Raymond Greene said Taiwan’s continued investment in deterrence and resilience remains vital, especially in uncrewed systems and other emerging technologies, American Institute in Taiwan (AIT) Director Raymond Greene said yesterday. Greene made the remarks at the annual National Strategic Summit on Supply Chain Resilience held by the Research Institute for Democracy, Society and Emerging Technology (DSET), a government-backed think tank. As Taiwan last year became the US’ fourth-largest trading partner and supply chain security is becoming more important, cooperation in emerging technologies continues to deepen between the two countries, he said. The US is committed to accelerating innovation, building key infrastructure, strengthening cooperation
The National Chungshan Institute of Science and Technology yesterday showcased its locally developed variants of the Vision 60 robotic patrol dog, which it plans to deploy on the nation’s outlying territories in the South China Sea. The variants were produced under the Joint Lab project — created by the institute and domestic companies — and assembled with domestically produced motors, lenses and artificial intelligence (AI) systems alongside licensed tech from the US, Missile and Rocket Systems Research Division deputy director Jen Kuo-kang (任國光) told the media event at a military base in Taipei’s Dazhi (大直) area. Taiwan has built up its strengths
RSS