FIVE European Union nations said on Tuesday they were reaching out to Aids patients in the developing world by sending doctors and other medical staff to African and Latin American hospitals. Officials from France, Italy, Luxembourg, Portugal and Spain said their hospitals would team up with hospitals in poor nations to offer them medical expertise, drugs and staff training. The announcement was made at a UN General Assembly special session on Aids. The initial goal was to form partnerships between 30 hospitals in Europe and 30 in the development world, with the number eventually rising to 60, French Secretary of State for Health Bernard Kouchner told a news conference. Kouchner said a key focus of the program would be an offer of aid in providing the often costly drugs needed to treat the disease. – Reuters