FILE PHOTO: An aerial view shows the Amazon rainforest at the Bom Futuro National Forest near Rio Pardo in Porto Velho, Rondonia State, Brazil, September 3, 2015.  REUTERS/Nacho Doce/File Photo
Brazil

Biden to Visit Amazon, Meet Brazil’s Lula Ahead of G20 Summit

U.S. President Joe Biden will visit the Amazon rainforest and meet Brazilian President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva, ahead of the G20 summit in Rio de Janeiro in November, sources say.

BRASILIA (Reuters) -U.S. President Joe Biden is expected to visit the Amazon rainforest and meet Brazilian President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva before they attend the G20 summit in Rio de Janeiro in November, sources familiar with the negotiations told Reuters.

Biden would stop in Manaus, the Amazon's largest city, or in Belem, at the mouth of the Amazon River, on Nov. 16 or 17, after the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) summit in Lima, Peru, which Lula will also attend, the sources said.

Their meeting in the Amazon would replace an official visit to Brasilia that Biden had promised Lula when the Brazilian leader visited the White House in 2023.

The day after the Group of 20 summit in Rio, Lula will receive Chinese President Xi Jinping on a state visit in Brasilia.

The U.S. government has started preparing for a Biden visit to the Amazon, although the stopover has not been confirmed, and officials have visited the two Brazilian cities to study conditions.

The White House declined to comment.

The annual summit of leaders of the world's largest economies is scheduled to be held on Nov. 18-19 in Rio.

(Reporting by Lisandra Paraguassu; Additional reporting by Trevor Hunnicutt in Washington; Editing by Sandra Maler)

Moldova Narrowly Backs EU Accession Amid Russia Meddling Claims

COP16 Summit to Address Urgent Threat of Rapid Nature Destruction

Italy's Birth Rate Set to Hit Record Low in 2024, ISTAT Reports

Azores Approves Largest Protected Marine Area in North Atlantic

Gliese 229B Identified as Rare Binary Brown Dwarf System