The US and several other nations have blocked a proposed global telecoms treaty that would have given national governments control of the Internet. The proposals at the International Telecoms Union (ITU) conference in Dubai would have given governments greater powers to control international phone calls and data traffic. Washington was “unable to sign the agreement in its current form,” Terry Kramer, head of the US delegation, said. The US stance was supported by the UK, Canada, Costa Rica, the Czech Republic, Denmark, Egypt, Kenya, the Netherlands, New Zealand, Poland, Qatar and Sweden. The ITU is a UN organization that coordinates telecoms use around the world.