OREANDA-NEWS The refusal of the European Commission (EC) to register the Gzhel brand on the territory of the European Union (EU) is strange and far-fetched, there are inconsistencies in it, said Dmitry Markin, patent attorney of the Russian Federation, in an interview with the newspaper Vzglyad.

According to him, the refusal contradicts the provisions of international law and the EU sanctions policy. At the same time, Markin admitted that over the years the EU's position will change, and the right will be assigned to the Russian copyright holder. In addition, the decision can be challenged.

The attorney also explained that the EC denied legal protection to the verbal designation "Gzhel" on the territory of the EU countries: "That is, the European Union considered that they were not ready at this stage and in the current situation to register the exclusive right to the name "Gzhel" to a Russian person." However, it is unlikely that anyone else in the EU will be given the right to "Gzhel", as they will consider it misleading.

"Therefore, the loss of this brand is unlikely for Russia. But it will be more difficult to protect your right to it if a conditional resident of the European Union decides to produce plates with such a painting and calls them "gzhel"," Markin added.

Earlier, BFM, citing the EU magazine, reported that the European Commission had refused to protect the rights to the Gzhel brand in the European Union. The decision was signed by the head of the European Commission, Ursula von der Leyen. Gzhel is the first Russian brand that the Russian Federation tried to register after joining the Geneva Act of the Lisbon Agreement in 2023.