The United States will strengthen its cooperation with China in protecting intellectual property rights (IPR) and cracking down on infringements and piracy, US assistant secretary of commerce David Bohigian said Saturday.

 

China and the United States both realize that the economic development and prosperity of a region should be based on the protection of IPR and innovations, Bohigian said at the end of a three-day visit to Shenyang, capital of northeast China's Liaoning Province.

 

Bohigian said that China is working to increase its capacity for innovations, and that the protection of IPR is critically important for innovations.

 

China needs to do much more in the protection of IPR, he said.

 

Bohigian arrived in Shenyang Thursday at the invitation of the US consulate general in Shenyang.

 

During his visit, Bohigian met with officials of Liaoning Province and Shenyang City, as well as local business leaders and scholars.

 

(Xinhua News Agency July 9, 2006)