President
Barack Obama meets with King Abdullah of
Saudi
Arabia at the G-20 summit in London, April 2.
President
Obama's apparent bow to the king created
a
storm of controversy in the U.S., but the author of this
article
staunchly defends President Obama as merely
being
polite to an older man, which is a widely-practiced
custom
in the Middle East and Asia.
Al Riyadh, Saudi Arabia
Obama: A Humble Leader Worthy of His Great Nation
"He is offering us an approach
we hadn't experienced before. His diplomacy is an attempt to bring people
together and provide transparency to diplomacy, rather than seeing the world as
hostile until proven otherwise, or accepting as friends and allies only those who
are blind and frightened followers. … Perhaps the bow at his meeting with the
Custodian of the Two Holy Mosques, King Abdullah, was incorrectly explained, but
the act did nothing to diminish his standing as president of the most important
nation."
Barack Obama is a new
American phenomenon. He hasn’t violated or failed to abide by even a single protocol.
Not overwhelmed by pride over post World War II America or its global dominance
after the demise of the Soviet Union, he is the new face. He has shown a sense
of national duty that reflects the true image of America - an America that seeks
to settle its differences with the world and develop cooperation and
partnership without arrogance and talk of the use of force. We have seen this
in the renewal of Europe's alliance with the superpower, the nurturing of ties
with Asia and the Islamic World, and the pride felt in Africa over the character
of a man of their race, who has reached the most powerful position in the
world. All of these qualities have won President Obama admiration, rather than the
suspicion that destroyed America’s reputation during the two terms of Bush the
younger.
By freeing America from the
ugliness of secret prisons, assaults on civil liberties and the favoring of
plots and animosity that prevailed under his predecessor, he has tried to implement
the promises he made during the election campaign. He is offering us an approach
we hadn't experienced before. His diplomacy is an attempt to bring people
together and provide transparency to diplomacy, rather than seeing the world as
hostile until proven otherwise, or accepting as friends and allies only those who
are blind and frightened followers.
Making enemies of over a
billion Muslims and hundred of millions of people in South America; considering
developing Asian nations a threat to American economic interests; dividing Europe
between old and new; and President Bush's self image as a special envoy from
God here to impose his own model on others, have led that great country into a
labyrinth of loss and growing hostility.
Posted by WORLDMEETS.US
The first test of President
Obama was the G20 summit. His success convincing others with his proposals, his
attractive personality and the way he invested his youth and vitality in every
meeting, mark him as the most intimate of all U.S. presidents in the last three
decades. Perhaps the bow at his meeting with the Custodian of the Two Holy
Mosques, King Abdullah, was incorrectly explained, but the act did nothing to diminish
his standing as president of the most important nation. [see video below]. This
showed him to be a person of great humility intent on breaking the pattern of diplomatic
false pride. In the Oriental and Islamic traditions, such bowing is a show of respect
of the young toward the old - and it is the Asians who follow this tradition
the most. In the same way, a European might lift his hat to show respect or flash
the V sign for victory. What President Obama did was commendable, be it with
King Abdullah or anyone else.
Obama showed himself to be a
world leader intent on constructing a new era in global relations by employing
the values of his country. And he put the stature of his nation into historical
context, by demonstrating that through the genius of its people, he has succeeded
in reaching the highest office ahead of his rivals.
Posted by WORLDMEETS.US
The return of America reassures
the world that it will play an active and peaceful role in confronting the sabotage
of this planet. Obama's call for a nuclear-free world is the fruit of a careful
self examination and the desire to be an appealing leader of a post-economic
crisis, post-pollution threatened world. America’s comeback is the starting line.
The finishing line of true justice is a goal worthy of American interests and
its position as leader of the world.
