A joint statement by the foreign ministers of Brazil, India and South Africa on 25 June called for a 'rules-based multilateral trading regime that is fair, equitable and addresses the legitimate aspirations of the developing countries'.

The foreign ministers of Brazil, India and South Africa – the three members of the IBSA Dialogue Forum – met in Paris this week at the margins of the annual ministerial meeting of the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD).

In a joint statement they reiterated their shared commitment to a positive outcome to the stalled Doha Round of world trade negotiations, stressing 'their willingness to intensify the dialogue with all WTO [World Trade Organization] members with a view to finding specific solutions to outstanding problems'.

They said it was imperative to put in place a 'rules-based multilateral trading regime that is fair, equitable and addresses the legitimate aspirations of the developing countries'.

Speaking at a news conference in Paris, Brazilian foreign minister Celso Amorim said that calls by the United States for major emerging countries to further open their markets in order to help bring about a trade deal were 'totally unfair'.

The tripartite IBSA grouping was formed in 2003 to strengthen economic and commercial ties between Brazil, India and South Africa and also to spearhead wider South-South cooperation. The fourth IBSA Summit will be held in Brasília in October this year.

Source: Ministry of External Relations and Embassy of Brazil in London