On 24 April 2025 Vyacheslav Trofimov, Director of Belpatentservice of the BelCCI, took part in the international seminar ‘Legal Protection and Safety of the Exporters' Rights to Intellectual Property Objects’.
On 24 April 2025, an international seminar ‘Legal Protection and Safety of Exporters’ Rights to Intellectual Property Objects’ took place in the Minsk Congress Hall of the President Hotel in Minsk.
The event was dedicated to the International Intellectual Property Day, which is celebrated worldwide on 26 April.
Mr. Daren Tang, Director General of the World Intellectual Property Organization (video message), Denis Korzhitsky, First Deputy Chairman of the State Committee for Science and Technology of the Republic of Belarus, Yuri Zubov, Head of the Federal Service for Intellectual Property of the Russian Federation (video message), Alexey Kurman, First Deputy Director General of the National Centre for Intellectual Property, addressed the participants of the seminar. The welcome address from Grigory Ivliev, Chairman of the Eurasian Patent Office of the Eurasian Patent Organisation (EAPO), was also delivered.
Daren Tang, in his video message, performed the composition ‘Sophisticated Lady’ on the piano by Duke Ellington. 'We want us to celebrate music, creativity and innovation together on April 26, World IP Day, to celebrate the importance of intellectual property in these areas and to join forces to help all of you, as well as musicians, artists and innovators,' the WIPO chief said. – Let us all remember the power of intellectual property, the power of music and how together they can make the world a better place. Not just on 26 April, but all year round.
As Denis Korzhitsky noted in his greeting, the annual export volume of Belarusian non-resource products reaches tens of billions of dollars, and they contain a significant share of intellectual property objects (IPOs) in the form of trademarks, industrial designs, inventions, etc. ‘Belarusian products are associated by foreign consumers as products of proven quality, hence the attempts of unscrupulous persons to use the reputable names of Belarusian products and goods by counterfeiting them, by pirating trademark registrations or infringement of IPR rights – both in the PRC, the Russian Federation and other countries,’ continued the First Deputy Chairman of the SCST. – Our task is to prepare exporters for these challenges, because 1 per cent of losses in the export of such products is equal to one billion dollars’.
Yuri Zubov emphasised the special importance of intellectual property in the export strategy of any enterprise, as protected IPRs allow exporters to feel much more confident in foreign markets. According to him, in the conditions of global competition, intellectual property rights make it possible to make money from innovations, strengthen the trust of foreign partners and investors, and legal protection in the form of patents protects against copying and unfair use of developments.
The speaker also pointed out that on 13 March 2025, during the official visit of President of the Republic of Belarus Alexander Lukashenko to Moscow, a new agreement between the governments of Russia and Belarus on cooperation in the field of intellectual property was signed by the heads of the SCST and the Federal Service for Intellectual Property of the Russian Federation. ‘Today IP legal protection is a strategic tool for entering foreign markets,’ summarised the head of FIPS.
Grigory Ivliev in his welcome address drew the attention of the participants of the event that the Eurasian Patent System helps exporters to expand the protection of invention and industrial design rights. To support member states, the Eurasian Patent Organisation is ready to expand the system and provide regional protection for brands and utility models.
In turn, Aleksei Kurman emphasised that in 2024 the foreign trade turnover of the Republic of Belarus amounted to USD 86 billion. ‘At the same time, the export of goods – not raw materials, but precisely goods – has increased in such areas as metallurgy, machine building, food and petrochemical industries. What is encouraging is that the share of exports of knowledge-intensive and high-tech products is about 40 per cent in terms of these export growth figures. This means that such products are based on new technical solutions, innovations, results of scientific and technical activities, which indicates the specific advantages of our products. And these specific advantages should be preserved and multiplied. Here the most important assistant is the Institute of Intellectual Property’, the First Deputy Director General of NCIS noted.
The participants of the seminar were provided with practice-oriented presentations on topical issues of protection and enforcement of intellectual property objects from representatives of NCIS, Rospatent, EAPO, Belarusian exporting enterprises, patent attorneys.
Andrey Zhuravlev, Head of the Centre for The International Cooperation of the Federal Institute of Industrial Property, presented a report on international treaties and measures to support exporters
Within the framework of the All-Russian contest ‘Exporter of the Year Award 2025’ Andrey Lvovich Zhuravlev, made a report on ‘International treaties in the sphere of legal protection of intellectual property objects and measures of state support for exporters: experience of the Russian Federation’.
In his speech Zhuravlev elaborated on the key aspects of international cooperation in the field of intellectual property and spoke about the measures of state support aimed at developing Russia's export potential
The event outlined the following regulations aimed at supporting Russian exporters
- Resolution of the Government of the Russian Federation of 15 December 2016. No 1368 ‘On state support for Russian manufacturers in order to compensate part of the costs associated with the registration of intellectual property objects on foreign markets
- Resolution of the Government of the Russian Federation of 24 April 2017. No 488 ‘On Approval of the Rules for Granting Subsidies from the Federal Budget to the Joint-Stock Company ’Russian Export Centre‘ for Financing Part of the Costs Related to the Promotion of High-Tech, Innovative and Other Products and Services in Foreign Market
- Resolution of the Government of the Russian Federation of 08.05.2019 No. 572 ‘On the establishment of the All-Russian award in the field of international cooperation and export ’Exporter of the Year‘ and the holding of the International Export ’Exporter of the Year‘ is awarded to organisations and individual entrepreneurs who have achieved the greatest forum ’Made in Russia‘ .’
Special attention was paid to the Russian Government Order No. 450-r of 26 February 2025, which approves the Programme to promote Russian products abroad under the national brand ‘Made in Russia’ for the period until 2030. The objectives of the Programme include improving the international competitiveness of Russian products and increasing the volume of non-resource, non-energy exports.
Andrey Zhuravlev noted that despite the objective difficulties faced by Russian business, it is important to develop foreign business relations and strengthen co-operation with reliable partners. The Head of the Centre also stressed the need for mutually beneficial trade, production and cooperation ties to achieve national interests.
The event was held in an atmosphere of constructive dialogue and exchange of experience, which contributes to the legal protection of the export potential of the Republic of Belarus.
The programme of the seminar is available at:
