HONOLULU: US President Barack Obama arrived Friday in his native Hawaii to host a weekend summit of leaders from Pacific Rim nations, including the leaders of Japan and China.
Launching a nine-day Pacific tour, Obama touched down aboard Air Force One in his birth city of Honolulu, where police had erected fences on laid-back Waikiki Beach and sniffer dogs scoped the palm tree-lined harbor.
The Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) forum brings together 21 economies located around the Pacific Ocean in an annual summit focused on economic growth, free trade and investment.
This year's summit promises to be dominated by fears over the eurozone crisis and talks on the Trans-Pacific Partnership, a US-led free trade deal that knock down trade barriers across the Pacific Ocean.
After leaving Hawaii on Monday, Obama will celebrate 60 years of security ties with Australia and make the first visit by a US president to the East Asia summit, set for Bali next week.
Copyright AFP (Agence France-Presse), 2011
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