Wikileaks releases secret trade agreement, says BRICs nations absent from negotiations

Springing a surprise, none of the BRICS nations found mention in the the secret draft text for the Trade in Services Agreement (TISA) Financial Services Annex, released today by Wikileaks.

The TISA covers 50 countries and 68.2 percent of world trade in services but Brazil, Russia, India and China remain out of its purview.

“The US and the EU are the main proponents of the agreement, and the authors of most joint changes, which also covers cross-border data flow. In a significant anti-transparency manoeuvre by the parties, the draft has been classified to keep it secret not just during the negotiations but for five years after the TISA enters into force,” said a Wikileaks press release.

Taking a hard stand against TISA, the Wikileaks release said, “Despite the failures in financial regulation evident during the 2007-2008 Global Financial Crisis and calls for improvement of relevant regulatory structures, proponents of TISA aim to further deregulate global financial services markets.”

Blaming the US for allegedly trying to invade personal and financial privacy, the release said, “The leaked draft also shows that the US is particularly keen on boosting cross-border data flow, which would allow uninhibited exchange of personal and financial data.”

Although Wikileaks described the absence of BRICS countries in the draft as “conspicuous” it did not elaborate further.

Read the complete press release below: