Bush seeks to make friends in hostile Latin America

SAO PAULO, Mar 8 (Reuters) US President George W Bush could face a hostile reception in the streets of Latin America as he begins a tour aimed at winning back friends in a region where his administration is deeply unpopular.

Bush arrives in Brazil today night, a country Washington sees as a potential counterweight to the influence of Venezuela's President Hugo Chavez and his plans for a socialist revolution in Latin America.

But thousands of demonstrators are expected to rally in Sao Paulo's main business avenue before Bush touches down, decrying perceived sins by the US government from the war in Iraq to its economic policies toward the developing world.

''Bush represents the rotten face of a degenerating empire,'' said Joao Antonio Felicio, an official with the Central Unica dos Trabalhadores labor confederation.

In Brazil's Congress on Wednesday, leftist legislators unfurled a banner reading ''Bush Is Not Welcome''.

On the official front, the five-nation tour is all about restoring the United States' standing in Latin America, where polls show widespread opposition to the Iraq war and US trade and immigration policies.

''It's nothing more than to say we want to be your friends,'' Bush said in an interview with RCN TV of Colombia, where he will arrive on Sunday. ''My trip is a chance to tell the people ... that the United States cares deeply about the human condition.'' Brazil's President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva, a moderate leftist who has a good rapport with both Bush and Chavez, is seen as a key figure in the mission.

He and Bush will discuss plans to cooperate on the production of biofuels and promote its use in Latin America. The two countries produce 70 per cent of the world's ethanol.

US officials have said this drive will help reduce poverty in Latin America by creating jobs -- a policy dubbed ethanol diplomacy.

They also hope it will limit the appeal of Chavez, who has used Venezuela's oil wealth to spread largesse and win followers in countries such as Bolivia and Ecuador.

''This is a golden opportunity for the weight of American influence to offset the influence of Venezuela's strongman,'' leading Brazilian newspaper O Globo said in an editorial.

But the initiative has been overshadowed by industry complaints about US tariffs on Brazilian ethanol. Lula has said he wants to discuss cutting the tariffs, but US officials say that is a matter for Congress to decide.

Both sides also hope the visit might bring fresh impetus to talks on a new world trade deal, which have stalled over market access and subsidies.

BIRD'S EYE VIEW OF PROBLEMS Bush is unlikely to see much of the protests. A security operation has been mounted in Sao Paulo involving 4,000 troops, police and agents. Streets have been sealed, threatening to paralyze parts of South America's largest city.

But he will get a birds-eye view of some of Brazil's environmental and social problems. His suite in the Hilton Hotel overlooks a permanently-jammed eight-lane highway and a filthy river. It also offers a view of an impoverished shantytown flanking the business district.

The tour will also take Bush to Uruguay, Colombia, Guatemala and Mexico.

Colombia's police chief said leftist guerrillas planned attacks and sabotage during his visit there at the weekend.

Colombian President Alvaro Uribe is a staunch supporter of a US free-trade deal and has received billions of dollars in US aid to fight the insurgency and a huge illicit drug trade.

As for Chavez, he will hold an anti-Bush rally in an Argentine soccer stadium across the River Plate from Uruguay tomorrow.

REUTERS SP KN2335