During his visit to Turkey, men carry posters of President Obama that

read, 'You are a real hero -You will change the destiny of the world.'

 

 

L'Orient Le Jour, Lebanon

Stars, Stripes and the Muslim Crescent

 

"Despite the commitments to support Israel that are required of every America chief executive, Israel may soon find itself on a collision course with Barack Obama. Only in refusing to submit to Israel, as so many of his predecessors have found themselves obliged to do, will Obama have truly brought this region its fair share of change."

 

EDITORIAL By Issa Goraieb

                                                  

 

Translated By Elise Nussbaum

 

April 9, 2009

 

Lebanon - L'Orient Le Jour - Home Page (French)

Barack Obama’s recent visit to Turkey was symbolically loaded. It was Turkey that played host to the last stage of the American President’s specifically European tour: what more effective, concrete way could there be of repeating that in the eyes of Washington (whether the resistant and skeptical like it or not), this country is an integral part of the Old Continent - and, consequently, that it has the right to knock at the door of the European Union?

 

Beyond the jibes that he sportingly and even cordially exchanged with the French, who are hostile to the idea of integrating Turkey, the White House chief's argument is of interest. Turkey occupies a unique position in the world precisely because it has an overwhelmingly Muslim population and yet is a member of the Atlantic Alliance; its integration into Europe would make it a model to follow for that portion of the Arab-Muslim world that has been plagued by extremism. All of this, of course, depends on whether Ankara’s government promotes reform, particularly with regard to religious freedom, and that it shows a willingness to cooperate so that the painful memory of the 1915 Armenian Genocide can finally be cleared away. What the public discourse omits in so many words is that Turkey must also - must importantly - provide all kinds of logistical help to America in that country’s quest to extricate itself from Iraq and Afghanistan with some dignity.

 

Though Obama has managed to clear the air of the Turkish-U.S. quarrel that erupted under Bush, it is in regard to Islam that his approach stands out most clearly from that of his Republican predecessor. Immediately after the anti-American attack of September 11, 2001, George W. Bush, either through neoconservative dogmatism or simple clumsiness, alienated much of the Arab-Muslim world by speaking of a holy crusade against terrorism. His extreme - and extremely deadly - invasion of Iraq, the unconditional support he accorded Israel and the short shrift he gave to the Palestinian question throughout most of his time in office didn’t help matters. 

Posted by WORLDMEETS.US


President Barack Obama addresses the Turkey National
Assembly in Ankara, April 6. WATCH

Masterfully playing on his own multicultural roots, meeting dignitaries of all persuasions in Istanbul, Bush’s successor offers, in contrast, friendship and partnership. He found it necessary to remind everyone that the United States is not and will never be at war with Islam. Many Americans have Muslims in their families … "I know because I'm one of them," added Obama, to the ovations of Turkish National Assembly members. Remarkable for its skillfulness - though not surprising - is his approach to the Palestinian question, which he outlined in Turkey: holding fast to the principles of the Annapolis Conference, the roadmap and the principle of a two-state solution, but also calling for the mutual concessions needed for a resolution of any conflict this complex.

 

The trouble is that by doing so, Obama is preaching to the converted on one side - the Arabs, who have long been resigned to making concessions to stay afloat - and on the other side, he suffers the affronts of Israeli irredentists. The destroyer of the Oslo Accords, Benjamin Netenyahu continues to officially rule out any possibility of a Palestinian state. "Annapolis is the past," shouted Israeli Foreign Minister Avigdor Lieberman last week - to which another minister added that Israel doesn't take orders from the President of the United States.

 

That is to say, despite the commitments to support Israel that are required of every America chief executive, Israel may soon find itself, whether it likes it or not, on a collision course with Barack Obama. Only in refusing to submit to Israel, as so many of his predecessors have found themselves obliged to do, will Obama have truly brought this region its fair share of change.

 

SEE ALSO ON THIS:

Algomhuria, Egypt: Israeli Defiance of Obama Shows There's No Point in Talking

L'Orient Le Jour, Lebanon: Stars, Stripes and the Muslim Crescent

Al Riyadh, Saudi Arabia: Obama: A Humble Leader Worthy of His Great Nation

Tishreen, Syria: To Succeed, Obama Must Stop Protecting 'Israeli Butchers'

Le Temps, Switzerland: America and Iran: Secret Talks in Geneva 'Revealed'

The Daily Star, Lebanon: Obama's Vision and Turkey's Influence Can Benefit Lebanon

Haaretz, Israel: A Clear Message from Obama

 

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[Posted by WORLDMEETS.US April 10, 3:49pm]