The international community must protect trade secrets and intellectual property rights, Deputy Minister of Foreign Affairs (MOFA) Tien Chung-kwang (田中光) told the opening day of a Taiwan-Japan-US workshop yesterday.
The Global Cooperation and Training Framework workshop includes representatives from the three nations, more than 180 law enforcement officials and experts from 19 nations in the Indo-Pacific area, attending in person and virtually.
The discussion yesterday focused on protecting trade secrets and intellectual property rights (IPR), the Ministry of Foreign Affairs said in statement.
Photo: Lu Yin-hsuan, Taipei Times
At the opening ceremony, Tien urged unity to protect trade secrets and intellectual property rights, saying that they are important components of economic growth and competitiveness, the ministry said.
American Institute in Taiwan (AIT) Director Brent Christensen highlighted the importance of the “four I’s” — the virtuous cycle of interaction, IPR protection, investment and innovation — the AIT said in press release.
“Advanced economies all recognize that intellectual property rights protection is the key ingredient to attract investment and encourage innovation in order to compete in our modern global economy,” Christensen said.
Prosecuting theft of trade secrets and stopping digital piracy of copyrighted content are the issues being highlighted at the workshop, which concludes today, the AIT said.
Representatives from the High Prosecutors’ Office, the Intellectual Property Office, the US Department of Justice and the FBI are among the participants sharing their experience and discussing best practice for prosecuting cases of trade secrets theft and digital piracy, the AIT said.
The workshop has been divided into three sessions, with participants discussing the latest developments in trade secrets regulations and common challenges in combating IPR infringements, North American Affairs Department Director-General Douglas Hsu (徐佑典) said at a news conference.
Japan-Taiwan Exchange Association Deputy Representative Yokochi Akira also attended the opening ceremony.
The workshop was organized by MOFA, the AIT and the association.
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