Following Russian President Vladimir Putin’s invasion of Ukraine, the European Patent Office will discontinue its collaboration with Russia’s and Belarus’ patent offices.
The European Patent Office has put a halt to its operations with Russia and Belarus
The EPO mentioned that it is “in solidarity with all those suffering from the appalling violence in Ukraine, as well as all refugees seeking safety in other countries,” and that it has made the decision to stop collaboration with the Russian and Belarusian patent offices, as well as the Eurasian Patent Organization.
Before its next administrative council meeting on March 22, the Munich-based agency said it will consider additional actions and “consequences.”
The EPO stated, “Our office was founded in the spirit of European and international cooperation.” “With staff from across all 38 European Patent Convention contracting states, we stand for peace, progress, and prosperity.”
Ukraine, Russia, and Belarus are not members of the European Patent Office (EPO), which was established in 1973 to offer a unified process for assessing and issuing European patents. It began with 16 nations and has now grown to 38, including former Soviet countries Latvia, Lithuania, and Estonia.
The EPO also said that it will work to raise funds for aid organizations, with the agency contributing and workers encouraged to do the same. The EPO’s social association will coordinate aid efforts, according to the organization.
Armenia, Azerbaijan, Belarus, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Russia, Tajikistan, and Turkmenistan are all members of the Eurasian Patent Organization, which is headquartered in Moscow.
Russia has been sanctioned by nations such as the United States, the United Kingdom, Japan, and the ever-neutral Switzerland since it launched its invasion of Ukraine. Russian banks and financial organizations are among the sanctions’ targets, as are high-ranking officials in Russia’s and Belarus’ governments, which participated in the invasion.
Ukraine asked the International Court of Justice to intervene immediately and restrain Russia, accusing the Kremlin of false genocide claims in the Luhansk and Donetsk territories to rationalize its invasion of Ukraine.
According to Kyiv, the subsequent war has resulted in “grave and widespread” breaches of the Ukrainian people’s human rights.
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy signed the country’s application for EU membership, further separating Ukraine from Russia.
You can find the list of EU IP firms and Russian IP firms here.