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ARMENIA, EU IN NEGOTIATIONS OVER USE OF WORD "COGNAC"
Xinhua General News Service, China
April 18, 2013 Thursday 9:10 AM EST
Garegin Melkonyan, the deputy economy minister, said that Armenia
and the European Union are discussing its use of the word "cognac"
for some beverages it produces.
Melkonyan told reporters Thursday that during negotiations with the
EU over the establishment of a free trade zone, Armenia's use of the
word "cognac" was being discussed.
The Agreement on the Deep and Comprehensive Free Trade Zone assumes
mutual recognition and protection of registered geographical names.
The word "cognac" is protected by European legislation and is
registered as a geographical name. Armenia has been telling its
European partners that "cognac" is domestically perceived merely as
a type of production.
In Soviet Armenia, cognac was the name of an alcoholic beverage that
was also well-known in other parts of the former Soviet Union.
However, since gaining independence from the former Soviet Union,
France challenged Armenia's use of the name. Cognac is a city in
France where the alcoholic beverage was first made. This led to the
widespread use of the term "brandy."
In 1998, after the famous French company Pernod Ricard purchased the
Ararat Brandy Factory in Yerevan, its production once again bore the
right to use the word "cognac" on its bottles.
Xinhua General News Service, China
April 18, 2013 Thursday 9:10 AM EST
Garegin Melkonyan, the deputy economy minister, said that Armenia
and the European Union are discussing its use of the word "cognac"
for some beverages it produces.
Melkonyan told reporters Thursday that during negotiations with the
EU over the establishment of a free trade zone, Armenia's use of the
word "cognac" was being discussed.
The Agreement on the Deep and Comprehensive Free Trade Zone assumes
mutual recognition and protection of registered geographical names.
The word "cognac" is protected by European legislation and is
registered as a geographical name. Armenia has been telling its
European partners that "cognac" is domestically perceived merely as
a type of production.
In Soviet Armenia, cognac was the name of an alcoholic beverage that
was also well-known in other parts of the former Soviet Union.
However, since gaining independence from the former Soviet Union,
France challenged Armenia's use of the name. Cognac is a city in
France where the alcoholic beverage was first made. This led to the
widespread use of the term "brandy."
In 1998, after the famous French company Pernod Ricard purchased the
Ararat Brandy Factory in Yerevan, its production once again bore the
right to use the word "cognac" on its bottles.