There has been a setback in the Doha round of trade talks. Trade leaders from the European Union, US, India and Brazil were negotiating in Germany to secure a new global trade deal by seeking concessions on agriculture.

Brazil and India have held the European Union and the United States responsible for the failure of the talks. They say that EU and US not offering enough concessions on agriculture. On the other hand the EU and U.S blamed India and Brazil for not opening up their markets for western manufacturers.

While the Indian commerce and industry minister Kamal Nath called for an attitudinal change in the EU and U.S approach to trade, Brazil’s Foreign Minister Celso Amorim said that the Brazilian and Indian delegations felt that the negotiations and meetings proved useless and preferred to walk away from the negotiations.

The U.S spokesman retorted that their President was disappointed as some of the participating countries were proving to be stumbling blocks in the course of trade expansion.

EU Trade Commissioner Peter Mandelson said that there was no rationalized outcome as few countries refused to open their markets. He said there was no parity or mutual benefits and the proposals were looking skewed.

However the collapsed outcome was greeted and well received by Environmental pressure group Friends of the Earth. Trade campaigner Joe Zacune said: "The collapse of these secretive trade talks is a good opportunity to develop an alternative approach to trade that works for developing countries and the environment."

The Doha Round of talks - named after the Qatari capital where discussions began in 2001 - have been repeatedly delayed because of continuing disagreements.

World Trade Organization boss Pascal Lamy recently warned that without a breakthrough very soon, the Doha Round could be put on hold for several years.