HKTV:
The United States and some other western countries have accused China of not doing enough in cracking down on infringements. There are also cases of stealing and infringing intellectual property rights. May I ask Mr. Shen, what is your response to this? How do you view China's determination to crack down on infringement?
Shen Changyu:
Thank you for your question. First of all, I should say that some accusations about China's intellectual property protection are groundless. They have not seen the tremendous progress and achievements that China has made over the years in terms of intellectual property protection.
In fact, since the reform and opening up, especially since the 18th CPC National Congress, China has upped the ante in IPR protection, insisting on the equal treatment and protection of IPR of domestic and foreign enterprises. China has made great progress, which is recognized by the world. The U.S. intellectual property authorities and relevant media also said that China's IPR environment is at the forefront of developing countries and is becoming the preferred place for multinational corporations to initiate intellectual property litigation in global range. The reason they do so is because they believe that they can be treated equally in China.
It should be said that there's no limit in improving IPR. At present, there's still room for China to make improvements, and we are stepping up efforts to resolve these problems. At the same time, we must realize that the issue of intellectual property infringement is a worldwide problem. The issue exists in every country, only that different countries at different stages of development have different manifestations. All countries should strive to improve their business environment and solve their own problems.
Of course, apart from the efforts of individual countries, international cooperation is also needed to solve the problem of intellectual property infringement. We are willing to work with Western countries including the United States, to strengthen communication and cooperation in the field of intellectual property protection. We hope to work jointly to combat all kinds of infringements and create a good business environment, because strengthening IPR and cracking down on infringements are not only the need for fulfilling our international obligations but also the inherent need of China's implementation of innovation-driven development. Therefore, we must work together to promote a good international business environment and promote the prosperous development of the world. Thank you.
