The United States and the European Union are promising to use their economic power to finalise the Doha round of global trade negotiations.
US president Barack Obama held two hours of talks with European officials during the NATO summit in Lisbon at the weekend.
A joint statement released after the talks says negotiators will be directed to promptly bring the Doha to a successful conclusion in 2011, Reuters reports.
The Doha trade round is aimed at lowering global trade barriers to stimulate economic activity.
