362.   At the outset I would like to thank the co-sponsors of document IP/C/W/697 for their paper Cross-Border Cooperation among IP offices and also the delegations who made this presentation. My delegation would wish to share some initial thoughts and also some questions on the paper. 363.   IP offices establish various forms of collaboration, and cooperation at bilateral, regional as well as international (WIPO) level, which this paper also acknowledges. The questions proposed for discussion in the paper can be useful to assess the existing forms of collaboration among IP offices. In this context it would be interesting for us to understand the purpose and intent of the paper overall. Further, the document implies a harmonized approach on IP protection for artificial intelligence and since this is an evolving and complex area where many countries are analysing the nature, scope and impact for their domestic policy making and, we believe is the right approach for now as it is crucial to have the policy space and freedom for countries to build a domestic landscape. In this regard, it would be good to understand if the co-sponsors are looking at any substantive outcomes in this area in the Council for TRIPS. We look forward to learning and understanding more from the co-sponsors on these issues that we raised.