PM jets off for ASEAN-US talks

Hun Sen is fare welled by US Ambassador Carol Rodley before leaving the country on Tuesday

PRIME Minister Hun Sen has left Cambodia  to attend the second ASEAN-United States Leaders’ Meeting in New York, where regional security, economic cooperation and the upcoming elections in Myanmar are expected to top the agenda.

Sri Thamrong, a government adviser who is part of the Cambodian delegation to the US, said yesterday that American President Barack Obama and heads of state from ASEAN’s 10 member nations would use the meeting to discuss a wide range of issues.

“The leaders of ASEAN and the US will look into the issues of economics, climate change, natural disasters, power security, food security, counterterrorism and other regional issues,” he said at Phnom Penh International Airport.
According to a draft copy of a joint statement set to be issued at the meeting tomorrow, the US and ASEAN will pledge to “further enhance economic cooperation” with the aim of sustaining the recovery from the global economic downturn and boosting domestic job creation.
It noted that two-way trade between the US and the Southeast Asian bloc reached US$84 billion in the first six months of the year, up 28 percent over the same period last year.
The draft also addressed regional flashpoints, including the situation in Myanmar, which is scheduled to hold long-awaited but controversial elections on November 7.