British Prime Minister Tony Blair is expected to lay out his agenda for the Group of Eight industrialized nations in an opening address to the World Economic Forum's annual meeting, focusing on climate change.
The Jan. 26-30 gathering brings together more than 20 heads of states, 70 cabinet ministers and a thousand senior business executives from 96 countries in the heavily-guarded Swiss alpine ski resort Davos.
Blair will address the opening session, the organizers said in a statement on Friday, adding he would focus on climate change, an issue which he has put at the top of his agenda for the current year that Britain leads the G8.
Blair's government has set out aggressive targets to curb Britain's emissions of CO2, which is commonly blamed for causing global warming, and wants others to follow suit.
While Blair has said he does not expect Washington to drop its opposition to the international Kyoto protocol aimed at reducing global warming, he has suggested that the United States could take unspecified other actions to prevent climate change.
Blair's other stated priority for the G8 is debt relief for poorer nations.
The WEF said he would participate in a session on Africa scheduled for Thursday, together with former U.S. President Bill Clinton, South African President Thabo Mbeki, Nigerian President Olusegun Obasanjo, and rock singer Bono.
Switzerland has devoted 5,500 troops to guard the conference and banned aircraft from airspace over Davos, which traditionally has drawn protests from anti-capitalist groups.
