Obama calls for 'new way forward' with Muslim world

Obama calls for 'new way forward' with Muslim world


New US President says America’s dealing with Muslim world to be based on mutual interest, mutual respect.

WASHINGTON - New US President Barack Obama vowed Tuesday to seek a "new way forward" with the Muslim world after eight rocky years under his predecessor George W. Bush.

In his speech upon taking office, Obama echoed campaign promises by saying the United States will "begin to responsibly leave Iraq to its people, and forge a hard-earned peace in Afghanistan."

The first black US president said "we reject the false choice between our safety and our ideals" of liberty and the rule of law, which critics worldwide say the Bush administration trampled on in its handling of the so called “war on terror”.

In a jab at the use of unilateral military force Bush used to invade Iraq in 2003, Obama said previous American generations had defeated fascism and communism with "sturdy alliances and enduring convictions" in addition to using brute military force.

These generations "knew that our power grows through its prudent use; our security emanates from the justness of our cause, the force of our example, the tempering qualities of humility and restraint," Obama said.

"Guided by these principles once more, we can meet those new threats that demand even greater effort -- even greater cooperation and understanding between nations," Obama declared.

"We will begin to responsibly leave Iraq to its people, and forge a hard-earned peace in Afghanistan," he said.

During his long presidential campaign, Obama vowed to mend alliances, in particular with Europe, whose support he seeks to help stabilize Afghanistan where a resurgent Taliban has emerged after its ouster by US forces in 2001.

"With old friends and former foes, we will work tirelessly to lessen the nuclear threat," he said.

He was alluding to a new approach of engaging diplomatically with Iran to rein in its nuclear ambitions.

"And for those who seek to advance their aims by inducing terror and slaughtering innocents, we say to you now that our spirit is stronger and cannot be broken; you cannot outlast us, and we will defeat you," he said.

He said the United States is a mix of people of different ethnic, language and religious groups from around the world who have tried to overcome tensions and hatred among such groups.

"We cannot help but believe that the old hatreds shall someday pass; that the lines of tribe shall soon dissolve," he said.

"To the Muslim world, we seek a new way forward, based on mutual interest and mutual respect," he added.

Source: Middle East Online