THE HAGUE, Netherlands (AP) — Locals, art lovers and diplomats like to meet over a meal and a drink in the historic Gastrobar Berlage behind a landmark art museum in The Hague.

But the usual stream of visitors turned into a trickle when fences started rising outside as part of super-tight security around a meeting of NATO leaders that is smothering the Dutch city in a massive military and police operation called Orange Shield.

Parts of the usually laid-back city, where NATO Secretary General Mark Rutte used to ride his bicycle to work while munching on an apple when he was prime minister of the Netherlands, are turning into a military fortress.

“It’s dead,” Berlage owner Bianca Veenhof said as she looked at an almost empty terrace at the start of what should have been Wednesday’s lunchtime rush.

Parking spots have been blocked off by freshly installed security fencing, workers in nearby offices have been told to stay home and public transit lines near the grounds have been diverted.

The city that markets itself as the global hub of peace and justice because of the international courts it hosts is turning into a city of security and inconvenience for the June 24-25 meeting that is scheduled to feature leaders of the 32-nation alliance, including U.S. President Donald Trump.

The summit comes as global geopolitical tensions soar and conflict escalates in the Middle East.

About half of the Netherlands’ police force will be on duty

In what they are calling the biggest security operation ever staged in the Netherlands, authorities are locking down parts of the city, closing off roads, and shutting down airspace.

Temporary barricades and metal mesh fences surrounding the World Forum summit venue are just a fraction of the measures that radiate out from The Hague.

Some 27,000 police officers — about half of the country’s entire force — will be on duty around the summit along with more than 10,000 defense personnel.

Getting away from it all

Many residents near the summit are not sticking around to watch the event unfold.

At the end of the week, Berlage will close its doors and sunny terrace for a week, only reopening when the NATO bandwagon has moved on.

Veenhof estimates the enforced closure and weeks of plummeting bookings will cost the bistro up to 150,000 euros ($173,000) in lost earnings.

Veenhof and her partner Bauke van Schaik, who is the chef at Berlage, have had enough of the summit already and are fleeing the city for the duration.

“Good friends of ours live in Portugal, so we going there for a few days,” she said. “We’ll be a bit further away from all the misery and frustration.”