Ukraine loses battle over brand slogan “Russian warship, fuck yourself” – POLITICO

In the years since, the phrase has become a symbol of Kiev's resilience against Moscow.

However, Ukraine claimed that the authorship of the phrase should rest with Kiev to prevent anyone else from claiming the trademark and profiting from the slogan. Commercial products with variations of the phrase “Russian warship, fuck yourself” are sold on several shopping platforms.

However, according to the EU court, the phrase – which Kiev sought to register as a trademark in Russian and English – “is not considered an indication of commercial origin,” accepting the argument of the EU intellectual property enforcement authorities had claimed at the end of last year that the slogan did not meet the requirements to become a brand.

The Luxembourg-based court considered that the phrase “very quickly became a symbol of Ukraine's fight against Russian aggression,” the ruling said. However, it added that a sign “cannot fulfill the essential function of a trademark if the average consumer perceives in its presence not an indication of the origin of the goods or services, but only a political message.”