USTR Says She Talked TRIPS Waiver, Ministerial in Meeting With WTO
U.S. Trade Representative Katherine Tai said that she and World Trade Organization Director-General Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala talked about how to "break the deadlock" on intellectual property issues at the WTO so that as many people as possible can get effective vaccines "as fast as possible." The readout, which said Deputy USTR and Chief of Mission, Geneva, Maria Pagan, and Deputy Director-General Angela Ellard were also in the meeting, said that Tai is continuing to engage with members of Congress and stakeholders. Congress is divided on the question of relaxing IP for coronavirus, with many Republicans saying a permissive trade-related intellectual property rights [TRIPS] waiver would undermine the medical research that brought vaccines to market in record time.
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"Ambassador Tai and Director General Okonjo-Iweala also discussed the upcoming 12th Ministerial Conference, global food security concerns, and broad supply chain challenges in key sectors," the readout also said.