Statement by U.S. Mission to the World Trade Organization Attaché Neil Beck at the WTO Trade Policy Review the Republic of Macedonia

On November 27, 2013, in Geneva, U.S. Mission to the World Trade Organization Attaché Neil Beck delivered remarks regarding the WTO's first review Macedonia’s trade policies and practices. He praised the Republic of Macedonia’s progress and pursuit of economic reform over the past decade and commended the Republic of Macedonia for becoming the newest observer to the WTO Agreement on Government Procurement this past June, and expressed hope that it will consider becoming a full Member in the near future.

With respect to the Republic of Macedonia’s EU candidacy process, Mr. Beck said the United States would appreciate more information on the extent to which Macedonia has adopted or harmonized its regulations with EU technical and sanitary and phytosanitary regulations affecting imports, including whether Codex, OIE and IPPC standards have been taken fully into account.

In the area of intellectual property rights, Mr. Beck said that, while the Republic of Macedonia appears to have put in place an IPR legislative framework that generally fulfills the requirements of TRIPS and other international agreements, the U.S. has concerns about the adequacy of IPR protection. To see Mr. Beck's full remarks on the USTR website, CLICK HERE