Customs Union (SACU), which includes Botswana, Lesotho, Namibia and Eswatini along with South Africa. Bharti Airtel was scheduled to acquire MTN to make one of the world's largest telecommunications companies, and also touted as step in South-South cooperation. The deal was, however, rejected by the South African government of Jacob Zuma on the grounds that MTN would not be as South African anymore amid concerns of dual-listing on the Indian and South African stock exchanges. Military ties India and South Africa have also developed military cooperation, trading arms and joint exercises like IBSAMAR, started in 2008 between India, Brazil, and South Africa and programs to train forces. Some analysts have argued that while there are some strategic commonalities between India and South Africa, this has not always translated into common perspectives. IBSA On June 6, 2003 India and South Africa signed an agreement with Brazil, known as the Brasília Declaration, establishing "South-South" cooperation, based on the premise of the three nations being regional powers of South Asia, Southern Africa and South America. The declaration called for extensive tripartite cooperation on strategic, commercial and cultural affairs, development of a tripartite free trade agreement and a united front in negotiating with Western nations in the World Trade Organization (WTO), calling for reform of the U.N. Security Council and supporting each other's bid for permanent membership with veto rights. The IBSA Dialogue Forum was created to promote cooperation and consensus on issues of trade, poverty alleviation, intellectual property rights, social development, agriculture, climate change, culture, defence, education, energy, health-care, information society, science and technology, peaceful nuclear energy, tourism and transport. The fourth summit was held in Brasília. The three nations pledged to boost trilateral trade to US$15 billion by 2010. The three nations have also expanded military cooperation and conducted joint naval exercises in 2008. South Africa and India Conclude Historic Cheetah Reintroduction Agreement: Over 100 Cheetahs to be Transferred in Decades to Come. References Further reading Malone, David M., C. Raja Mohan, and Srinath Raghavan, eds. The Oxford handbook of Indian foreign policy (2015) excerpt pp 552–595. Bilateral relations of South Africa South Africa India and the Commonwealth of Nations South Africa and the Commonwealth of Nations South Africa