TÜRKMENISTANYŇ DÖWLET, HUKUK WE DEMOKRATIÝA INSTITUTY
Jennet SAPAROVA,
Postgraduate Student of the Turkmen
State University named after Magtymguly
The future development of the modern economy depends on the creation of a solid legal framework for intellectual property, as intellectual property encompasses the entire sphere of human activity. Under the wise leadership of the esteemed President, our country is effectively working to organize an intellectual property protection system in accordance with international standards and ensure guarantees for the protection of citizens’ intellectual property rights at the national and international levels.
International trade is inextricably linked with intellectual property, as most goods transported across borders necessarily contain intellectual property (technology, trademarks, copyright, etc.). Thus, issues related to the effective use of intellectual property, the development of a rights protection system, and the legal regulation of intellectual property trade are among the pressing issues of our time. These issues are important for the economies of all countries, as existing intellectual potential and innovative economic development can become a source of competitive advantage on the global stage through the effective use of intellectual property. The role of intellectual property in achieving competitive advantages and its impact on activating foreign trade activities are determined by national and regional legislation.
In our country, state support is provided for research and development aimed at contributing to the development of various sectors of the economy, and important programs are being adopted in this area. The program "Revival of a New Era of a Sovereign State: National Program for Socio-economic Development of Turkmenistan in 2022–2052" and the "Program of the President of Turkmenistan for Socio-economic Development of the Country for 2022–2028" place particular emphasis on further intensifying the interaction between fundamental scientific and practical research and production. Successful implementation of the important tasks outlined in the programs will contribute to the further development of a science-oriented economy in our country, increasing the effectiveness of intellectual and creative activity, and bringing the intellectual property system into line with high quality standards.
In Turkmenistan, normative legal acts are regularly adopted that regulate the support, stimulation and protection of intellectual property. The laws regulating activities in this area include the following: "On Scientific Intellectual Property" (22.11.2025), "On Trademarks" (08.06.2019), "On Appellations of Origin of Goods" (08.06.2019), "On Legal Protection of Selection Achievements" (04.08.2011), "On Copyright and Related Rights" (10.01.2012), "On Legal Protection of Inventions" (04.11.2017), "On Legal Protection of Industrial Designs" (04.11.2017), "On Rationalization Activities" (02.03.2019) and other legal acts of Turkmenistan. The national legislation also reflects the norms concerning trade in intellectual property rights. For example, Article 18 of the Law of Turkmenistan "On Scientific Intellectual Property", adopted on November 22, 2025, stipulates that the owner of scientific intellectual property has the right to assign (transfer) their right to scientific intellectual property, in whole or in part, to individuals or legal entities [1].
The protection of human achievements in the field of intellectual property is also ensured at the international level. The World Intellectual Property Organization (WIPO) is responsible for the harmonization of national intellectual property rules applied in different countries, as well as for promoting the adoption of international standards and protecting various types of this property. This organization, established in 1967, is a specialized agency of the United Nations engaged in the protection and use of intellectual property. A full member of WIPO since 1995, Turkmenistan has achieved significant success in regulating intellectual property. In order to comply with the requirements of current intellectual property protection regulations at the global level, Turkmenistan has become a party to a number of international conventions, treaties, and agreements. Thus, our country has acceded to the Paris Convention for the Protection of Industrial Property, the Patent Cooperation Treaty, the Eurasian Patent Convention on Inventions, the Protocol Relating to the Madrid Agreement Concerning the International Registration of Marks, the Strasbourg Agreement Concerning the International Patent Classification, the Locarno Agreement Establishing an International Classification for Industrial Designs, the Nairobi Treaty for the Protection of the Olympic Symbol, the Geneva Act of the Hague Agreement Concerning the International Registration of Industrial Designs, the Berne Convention for the Protection of Literary and Artistic Works, and other treaties.
The World Trade Organization (hereinafter referred to as the WTO) performs the primary functions in the area of intellectual property trade. Intellectual property rights are the right of an owner to own, use, and dispose of the results of scientific research, inventions, literary and artistic works embodied in various forms [2]. A special place among multilateral international agreements is occupied by the Agreement on Trade-Related Aspects of Intellectual Property Rights (hereinafter referred to as the TRIPS Agreement), which is part of the system of agreements establishing the WTO and entered into force on January 1, 1995. This agreement was adopted in 1994 during the Uruguay Round of the General Agreement on Tariffs and Trade and, above all, establishes minimum standards for the recognition and protection of intellectual property. The TRIPS Agreement is aimed at regulating only the trade-related aspects of intellectual property. The TRIPS Agreement opens the possibility of using the WTO’s highly effective dispute resolution mechanisms for intellectual property (for example, if one country infringes the rights of an author from another country, the latter, having brought the dispute through WTO dispute resolution procedures, can increase the import duty on certain goods from the infringing country into its territory).
The TRIPS Agreement primarily ensures that countries that have acceded to the Berne Convention for the Protection of Literary and Artistic Works comply with its substantive provisions (except for provisions on moral rights). The TRIPS Agreement includes a number of fundamental rules that supplement the provisions of the Berne Convention. According to these rules, copyright protection also applies to computer programs. The TRIPS rules establish the content of intellectual property, in particular, they define the types of exclusive rights subject to mandatory legal protection. According to the TRIPS Agreement, there are eight such types, including copyright, related rights, trademarks, geographical indications, industrial designs, patents, topographies of integrated circuits, and trade secrets (know-how). It should be noted that the list of these types is open-ended, as the TRIPS Agreement incorporates provisions of a number of international treaties. For example, according to Article 8 of the Paris Convention for the Protection of Industrial Property, this list may also include trademarks.
An analysis of the TRIPS Agreement has revealed the key features of the provisions of this document. The main features of the TRIPS Agreement are as follows: The term of protection of property rights granted by copyright must be at least 50 years after the death of the author, for video films- 50 years from the date of their creation, for photographs- at least 25 years from the date of creation; Copyright must be granted automatically and must not be dependent on compliance with registration rules; Computer programs are considered to be literary works and have the same conditions of protection; Patents must be granted in all fields of technology, but exceptions are allowed for the protection of the public interest. The term of protection of property rights granted by a patent must be at least 20 years; Each state must accord to citizens of other countries that have acceded to TRIPS the same level of rights in the field of intellectual property that it accords to its own citizens [3]. The provisions of the TRIPS Agreement have no direct effect. WTO members must incorporate the provisions of TRIPS into their national legislation, however, despite this, Article 1 of the Agreement states: "Members of the WTO shall be free to determine the method of implementing the provisions of this Agreement". This means that when a dispute is considered in court, national legislation applies, but these norms must be harmonized with TRIPS provisions.
It should be noted that our country’s legislation already provides for regulatory requirements for the protection of intellectual property rights. For example, according to Article 23 of the Law of Turkmenistan "On Copyright and Related Rights", copyright is valid for the lifetime of the author and 50 years after their death. Furthermore, the Law of Turkmenistan "On the Legal Protection of Inventions" stipulates that the term of patents for inventions is twenty years. Thus, the above-mentioned conventions adopted in the field of intellectual property protection define the current framework of intellectual property rights, the duration of protection, and other conditions that must be provided for in the national legislation of participating states.
The modern economy is creating new conditions for increasing competitiveness in the global market. Intellectual capital is one of the most important factors. With the accession of new countries to the international intellectual property protection system, its geographic scope is expanding, demand for intellectual property registration is growing, and revenues from trading intellectual property rights in international markets are increasing. Therefore, the need to regulate relations arising in the field of intellectual property, including trade in intellectual property rights, is increasing every year.
Thus, all of the above indicates that our country is successfully implementing the tasks of strengthening the legislative framework in the field of intellectual property and encouraging new discoveries, which ultimately contributes to sustainable development and improving the living conditions of the population.
Bibliography
1. Law of Turkmenistan «On the Protection of Scientific Intellectual Property» // online website of the Ministry of Justice of Turkmenistan: https://minjust.gov.tm/ru/hukuk/merkezi/hukuk/741
2. Nuryev Y.M., Charyev A.A., Gurbanov J.H. International Private Law. Study Guide. – A.: Ylym, 2018.
3. Agreement on Trade-Related Aspects of Intellectual Property Rights // World Intellectual Property Organization https:// wipolex-res.wipo.int