Top trade officials from around the world nations gather in Sao Paulo for a week of discussions in which Brazil hopes to forge a south-south alliance to counterbalance wealthy northern countries in trade talks.
The UN Conference on Trade and Development, which is holding its 11th meeting here from Sunday to Friday, brings trade ministers from 192 countries together every four years seeking more balanced integration between developing and developed countries.
The weeklong UNCTAD meeting "will be known as a meeting of the new geography of trade," said Rubens Ricupero, a top event organizer, paraphrasing similar statements by Brazilian President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva.
Brazil has taken the lead in organizing developing countries, and is hoping to launch a round of trade talks exclusively among developing -- or "southern" -- nations that runs parallel to the World Trade Organization talks.
One of Brazil's biggest successes in the trade negotiation arena is the formation of the Group of 20, which gathers some of the world's strongest developing nations.
Current Group of 20 members are Argentina, Brazil, Bolivia, Chile, China, Cuba, Egypt, India, Indonesia, Mexico, Nigeria, Pakistan, Paraguay, the Philippines, South Africa, Tanzania, Thailand, Venezuela and Zimbabwe.
The G-20 aims to put pressure in WTO talks on wealthy -- or "northern" -- countries to eliminate or diminish their agricultural subsidies.
Brazilian and Indian officials will represent the G-20 at a meeting Sunday with the US Trade Representative Robert Zoellick and the European Union's Pascal Lamy.
"We must strive to ensure that the language to be agreed in the framework (in trade talks with wealthy nations) will lead to the complete phase-out by a credible end-date of all forms of export subsidies," said Brazilian Foreign Minister Celso Amorim after a meeting of G-20 ministers Saturday.
"Let us build on our achievements so far and make sure that this positive momentum will be mantained," he added.
The UNTACD event formally begins Monday with a presentation by Lula. Venezuelan President Hugo Chavez is also expected to attend.
UN Secretary General Kofi Annan on Saturday addressed one of the UNCTAD's main forums, the Group of 77 developing nations, on the group's 40th anniversary.
The G-77 is actually made up of 132 of the world's developing nations, but has retained its original name.
Cuban President Fidel Castro -- who hosted a G-77 summit of national leaders in Havana in 2000 -- may also show up in Sao Paulo during the week.
Castro sent a letter to the developing nations on Saturday urging them to strengthen their links of "unity and cooperation" in these days of global "exploitation and injustice."Agence France Presse:
