A fresh set of UN climate discussions will begin on Monday with nearly 200 countries gathering in Mexico in the hopes of reaching an agreement on key issues that divide wealthy and developing nations. The two-week conference in Cancun will focus on securing funds and strategies to protect rainforests and prepare for a warmer planet. Additionally, efforts will be made to formalize current targets for reducing greenhouse gas emissions. This event is not expected to generate as much excitement as last year's Copenhagen summit, which aimed to establish a new climate agreement but ultimately resulted in a non-binding deal that was rejected by some developing countries. The ongoing UN negotiations have highlighted tensions between the top two emitters, the United States and China, as the US calls for China to reduce emissions, similar to pressure on trade and human rights issues. Mexican President Felipe Calderon emphasized the economic benefits of addressing climate change on the eve of the talks, in an effort to rebuild trust following the previous summit. He argued that the perceived conflict between environmental protection and poverty alleviation, or between addressing climate change and promoting economic growth, is not real. Calderon highlighted the importance of renewable energy by unveiling a wind turbine to power the conference hotel. He stated that the discussions would primarily focus on preparing for a warmer world, which is a significant concern for less affluent nations. However, his emphasis on adaptation instead of stricter emissions commitments, particularly from developing countries, unsettled European Union negotiators. "We will be searching for a limited number of decisions in Cancun. Our goal is to establish a path forward," said Artur Runge-Metzger, a senior EU negotiator, on Sunday. Peter Wittoeck, a senior negotiator from Belgium, which currently holds the rotating EU presidency, stated, "We can see the beginnings of a compromise." The main objective of the negotiations is to reach a more stringent climate agreement to replace the Kyoto Protocol, which will expire in 2012, in order to intensify efforts to combat global warming. Studies conducted on Sunday indicated that in the worst-case scenario of climate change, global temperatures could rise by 4 degrees Celsius (7.2F) by the 2060s, requiring an annual investment of $270 billion to mitigate rising sea levels.