Hanoi?The US has asked Asean to arrange for its State Secretary Hilary Clinton to sit in as an observer at the upcoming East Asia Summit.
The request was made after Kurt Campbell, Assistant State Secretary for East Asia and Pacific Affairs told the Washington-based Asean ambassadors that US would like to join the leader forum.
The EAS will be held back to back to the 17th Asean summit from 28-29 October in Hanoi.
The source said that Asean would soon invite both the US and Russia to join EAS next year. "But Hilary's participation as an observer and its modality as yet to be worked out," he said.
US President Barrack Obama, according to the source, has committed to attend the 8th EAS hosted by Indonesia at the end of next year. He has postponed his planned visit to Indonesia on two occasions in March and June.
The Nation
