Saturday, November 17th, 2012 
SECURING
THE ‘MOTHER OF ALL SUMMITS’ Cambodian police officers stand next to a
logo of Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) in front of the
Peace Palace ahead of the 21st of ASEAN Summit and related Summit, in
Phnom Penh, Cambodia, Friday, November 16, 2012. AP/Heng Sinith
PHNOM PENH, Cambodia—Cambodian authorities on Friday kept a
tight watch over vital installations here, posting policemen at nearly
every corner ahead of what the Philippine ambassador described as the
“mother of all summits” to be attended by world leaders.
The expected star of the show is US President Barack Obama whose
attendance at the 21st Association of Southeast Asian Nations (Asean)
summit and related summits is taken as a reflection of the growing
importance of the bloc, which will try to mend rifts caused by maritime
tensions with China.
Police patrols
“The security is much tighter than in April (for the 20th Asean
summit, also held in Phnom Penh) since it has been announced that
President Obama is coming,” Philippine Ambassador to Cambodia Noe Wong
said.
Police carrying truncheons on Friday
patrolled all major roads and intersections, including Russian Boulevard
facing Peace Palace, venue of the Nov. 18-20 meetings.
A platoon of security forces in black
uniform and brandishing assault rifles marched in file along the busy
thoroughfare before entering the summit venue.
Military jeeps carrying heavily armed
officers cruised the streets alongside tuktuk rickshaws and motorcycles
favored by the locals.
Information Minister Khieu Kanharith, also
the government spokesperson, told Xinhua news agency that 10,000
security forces, excluding security details brought in by the arriving
heads of state and government, were deployed to safeguard the summit.
Nearly 2,000 journalists from 40 countries have registered with the information ministry to cover the summit, he added.
The summiteers
Other leaders who will attend the summit
are the heads of Asean countries, as well as of their partners,
including Chinese Premier Wen Jiabao, South Korean President Lee
Myung-bak, Japanese Prime Minister Yoshihiko Noda, Indian Prime Minister
Manmohan Singh, Australian Prime Minister Julia Gillard and New Zealand
Prime Minister John Key, Cambodia’s spokesperson said.
Asean groups the Philippines, the host
Cambodia, Singapore, Indonesia, Malaysia, Brunei, Thailand, Burma
(Myanmar), Laos and Vietnam.
During a courtesy call by reporters from
the Philippines on Friday, Wong noted that it would be Obama’s first
visit to Cambodia, and there was excitement about how his presence could
serve Asean ends.
On the Philippine side, Wong said there was
an undercurrent of hope that the US president could boost the
Philippines’ position on the West Philippine Sea (South China Sea)
dispute with China, considering the “special relationship” between the
two allies.
Although President Aquino, who arrives here
on Saturday, is not scheduled for any bilateral meeting, Wong said
there would be plenty of opportunities for the leaders to have informal
talks during breaks in the program.
“There will be windows for bilateral talks, considering how many coffee breaks there are during the meetings,” he said.
Mr. Aquino is expected to raise a number of
concerns at the summit, chief among them the drafting of a binding code
of conduct that will guide negotiations between claimants to territory
in the West Philippine Sea.
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