United States Ambassador to Pakistan Donald Armin Blome vows to strengthen IP protection in Pakistan
Pakistan and the United States have had a supporting relationship dating back for nearly a century. The United States has provided Pakistan with grants annually in the form of military aid for decades. But to describe the relationship between the 2 countries as ‘good’ or ‘friendly’ does not quite cut it. It is more like a “roller coaster” relation with many complex aspects. Regardless, Pakistan has always been one of the United States’ main interest jurisdictions. Accordingly, recently, the United States Ambassador to Pakistan Donald Armin Blome has given a statement to vow to strengthen IP protection in this country.
Donald Armin Blome – the United States Ambassador to Pakistan with an impressive resume has said that he vowed to strengthen the ties between the United States and Pakistan going forward, especially in the field of Intellectual property protection and digital economy regulations.
The United States Ambassador to Pakistan
Prior to joining the government, Donald Armin Blome worked as an attorney in Chicago, Illinois.
Blome is a member of the Senior Foreign Service and has served as an American diplomat since 1993.
Blome speaks Arabic and has worked in roles within the United States Department of State and in Tunisia, Afghanistan, Jerusalem, Kuwait, and Egypt.
In August 2018, Blome was nominated by President of the United States Donald Trump to serve as U.S. Ambassador to Tunisia. His nomination was confirmed in the United States Senate by voice vote on January 2, 2019.
He was sworn into office on January 9, 2019. Hebeensented his credentials to President Beji Caid Essebsi on February 7, 2019.
Blome was appointed by US President Joe Biden in October 2021.
Strengthen the United States – Pakistan ties
At his confirmation hearing at the US Senate Foreign Relations Committee on Capitol Hill in December 2021, Blome has stated that Pakistan has long had a strong foundation for IP, especially in recent times. To strengthen that basis, the two countries need to make US commercial interests to be a part of Pakistan’s economic advancement.
In 2021, the IP world has seen a sharp surge in IP development in Pakistan. At the beginning of the year, on February 24, 2021, Pakistan has acceded to the Madrid Protocol, creating a legal framework for the protection of geographical indications, among others.
Nonetheless, although with much improvement, Pakistan still needs to change many of its policies in IP law to truly become a rising star in the IP world, especially with the outdated Trade Marks Ordinance 2001, among other laws such as copyright and patent law.
Expert opinions
Sana Shaikh Fikree, senior associate at Vellani & Vellani in Karachi has commented about the changing of Pakistan, stating that a lot more has to be done with regard to the amendment of Trade Marks Ordinance 2001 to include provisions for the protection of trademarks through international registration under the Madrid Protocol.
Regarding copyright and patent law, Fikree noted that there need to be many fundamental changes and the changes need to be done quickly to cope with the world’s rapid acceleration in technology, especially AI: “Current patent laws lack provisions with regard to patentability of algorithms, computational and mathematical methods. The current copyright law recognizes software and codes as literary works but lacks provisions to protect ideas and inventive concepts unless the same have bene translated into some form of expression.”
About specialized IP tribunals, Fikree further added that there should be more investment, providing the presiding officers in Pakistan with the necessary tools to make them well-versed in Pakistan’s IP laws.
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