Mugabe, who has ruled Zimbabwe for nearly three decades since independence, will attend the Lisbon summit on December 8-9. British Prime Minister Gordon Brown plans to boycott the meeting in protest over Mugabe's record on human rights and the economy.

"The sinister campaign led by Britain to isolate us, indeed in the recent attempt to bar us from attending the European Union-Africa summit soon to be hosted by Portugal, continues to disintegrate," Mugabe said in a televised address to parliament.

"I wish to thank the European Union and African countries for their support and the Portuguese government who are hosting the European Union-Africa summit for their correct reading of the situation," Mugabe said.

Western governments accuse Mugabe of gross human rights violations and ruining Zimbabwe's once prosperous economy.

The United States said on Monday it would impose financial and travel sanctions on about 40 more people with ties to his government.

Mugabe said the further travel and financial sanctions planned by the United States were vindictive and driven by hatred of his government.

Washington has already imposed sanctions on about 130 people with links to Mugabe, and the plan is to expand that list by placing financial restrictions on about half a dozen more people and U.S. travel bans on an additional three dozen.

"Well, they are obviously sanctions that have no rationality and sanctions that are vindictive," Mugabe told journalists as he left parliament after delivering his speech.

"So you just have to look at them in that light, that the Americans have no cause. Their cause is just hatred, hatred of us and I would like to believe that there is some racialism in it also," Mugabe said.

While Western powers have tried to isolate Mugabe, many Africans see the 83-year-old as a hero of the independence struggle who is still resisting Anglo-American hegemony.

TALKS

For the past seven years all attempts to hold the EU-Africa summit have failed because Britain and its allies sought to exclude Mugabe and African leaders would not come without him.

Mugabe accuses his Western foes of sabotaging the country's economy in retaliation for his seizure of white-owned commercial farms for blacks.

He thanked the Southern African Development Community (SADC) for backing Harare and for initiating talks between his government and the opposition.

"We are deeply indebted to our brothers and sisters in SADC for their solidarity with us in the face of sustained manipulation and arm-twisting manoeuvres cunningly being spearheaded by Britain," Mugabe said.

The ruling ZANU-PF and the main opposition Movement for Democratic Change (MDC) are holding talks aimed at ending the country's political and economic crisis, marked by the highest inflation rate in the world and chronic shortages of foreign currency, food and fuel.

The talks have resulted in the adoption of a constitutional bill which clips Mugabe's powers to appoint legislators and would allow members of parliament to choose a president if the incumbent failed to complete his term.

Analysts say Mugabe could use the provision to anoint a successor and rule from the sidelines.

Faced with a weak and divided opposition, Mugabe looked set to win in next year's presidential and parliamentary elections, further entrenching his rule, analysts said.