U.S. Stymies Chinese Bid to Run Intellectual Property Agency
(Bloomberg) -- The U.S. defeated a Chinese bid to run the United Nations intellectual property agency, a victory in the Trump administration’s push to convince countries of the threat posed by China taking a more assertive role on the global stage.
The U.S.-backed candidate, Daren Tang of Singapore, won by a vote of 55-28 over Chinese candidate Wang Binying among the governments voting for the leadership of the World Intellectual Property Organization, which helps develop cross-border policies on intellectual property.
While the agency is relatively obscure, the leadership fight had become a crucial battleground in the bid by President Donald Trump’s administration to counter what it has seen as China’s growing influence and assertiveness in international agencies and the U.N. The State Department had made it a top priority to stop China’s candidate from winning the election.