Brown and Sarkozy

British Prime Minister Gordon Brown and French President Nicolas Sarkozy have issued a joint call for the urgent global reform of financial markets.

The joint letter comes ahead of talks on the sidelines of an EU conference, where they will try to brush off a row over an EU appointment.

Mr Sarkozy appeared to boast that a Frenchman's appointment to oversee European banking was a British defeat.

The EU summit will also address climate change and financing.

Mr Brown and Mr Sarkozy had cancelled a meeting scheduled to be held last week, amid speculation of a row over EU posts.

Mr Sarkozy had told Le Monde newspaper the British were "the big losers" in the share-out of EU jobs after former French agriculture minister Michel Barnier was given the role of supervising Europe's internal market for financial services, most of which is in the City of London.