PM advocates common position at IBSA Summit
Johannesburg,
Oct
17:
Advocating
common
position
among
India,
Brazil
and
South
Africa
on
important
international
issues,
Prime
Minister
Manmohan
Singh
today
said
the
IBSA
Movement
should
move
from
a
declaratory
phase
to
one
of
time
bound
action
to
catch
the
imagination
of
the
people
of
the
three
countries.
In his remarks at the opening plenary session of the Second India-Brazil-South Africa (IBSA) Summit, Dr Singh called for focussing the time and resources of the three countries to ensure productive outcomes in agreed priority areas of trilateral cooperation.
''We can agree today that by the time of the next Summit all the Working Groups, including those on ICT and Trade and Investment, should complete one cycle of meetings in each of our countries.'' Welcoming the discussions on India-SACHU-Mercosur Free Trade Agreement (FTA), he said ''this is a bold initiative to give an impetus to our trading ties and we will work sincerely to bring it to fruition.''
Referring to the decision of the first IBSA meeting at Brasilia in 2006, identifying assistance to other developing countries as one of the thrust areas of IBSA cooperation, Dr Singh proposed that the three countries work on one big flagship IBSA project using the Fund for Poverty and Hunger, which would convey the Forum's commitment in this area.
While
stressing
the
need
for
enhanced
cooperation
among
the
IBSA
countries,
Dr
Singh
called
for
addressing
the
lack
of
adequate
air
connectivity
among
the
three
countries.
''This
hampers
our
cooperation,''
he
said,
adding
''we
should
reflect
on
how
to
encourage
air
and
maritime
links,
which
may
not
commercially
viable
to
begin
with.''
UNI