Sydney blockaded by 'ring of steel' ahead of APEC

SYDNEY: A steel and concrete wall was being put in place around Australia's largest city Sydney on Saturday as officials ramped up security preparations for the APEC summit.

The so-called 'ring of steel', a 2.8 metre high wall trailing through the city's main tourist centre near the Sydney Opera House, is designed to help police manage large crowds and to prevent vehicle access to the venues.

New South Wales police commissioner Andrew Scipione said hosting the September 8-9 Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation summit of world leaders was the biggest security challenge the city had ever faced.
      
"Right now, there's one priority, there's one show in town and that's APEC," he said.

"It's the biggest security event we've ever had in this nation."

Large numbers of police are patrolling the city in vehicles, on push bikes and even on jet skis on the harbour.

Alex Bainbridge, who has organised what is expected to be the biggest protest during the summit, said the security element to APEC had been played up as a way of deterring people from demonstrating.

"It's part of an overblown security operation," he told. "We think this wall is unnecessary and shouldn't be there. It's dividing Sydney in two."