Obama to reach out to Muslim world with Mideast trip
Thursday, 4 June 2009
WASHINGTON, June 3 (CNN): President Obama will arrive in Saudi Arabia Wednesday, his first stop on a Middle East trip that will include a major speech intended to repair a damaged US image.
President Obama plans to use his speech Thursday in Egypt to begin a fresh dialogue with the Muslim world.
President Obama plans to use his speech Thursday in Egypt to begin a fresh dialogue with the Muslim world.
The president will deliver the widely-anticipated address in Cairo, Egypt, on Thursday in hopes of reaching out to Muslims and begin a dialogue.
"I think what is important is that we demonstrate that the United States wants to pursue a different relationship and ensure that Muslims around the world understand the message of the United States," White House spokesman Robert Gibbs told reporters Tuesday.
"We have more in common than we have disagreement about, and I think that's what he wants to ensure that the vast majority of the Muslim world hears." Mamoun Fandy, a Mideast expert, said Muslims want more than talk; they want action.
They want to hear "that he is very serious about solving the Israeli-Arabian problem, that he is very serious about engaging the Muslim world on the basis of recognizing the equality," Fandy said. Video Watch what Egyptian residents want to hear from Obama "
The Arab-Israeli conflict is the most important, most intractable problem in the Muslim world. On Tuesday, Gibbs was quick to tamp down expectations of how much the president can accomplish with one speech.
In recent days, the president has been getting tough on Israel, pushing a two-state solution in meetings with a resistant Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu.
President Obama plans to use his speech Thursday in Egypt to begin a fresh dialogue with the Muslim world.
President Obama plans to use his speech Thursday in Egypt to begin a fresh dialogue with the Muslim world.
The president will deliver the widely-anticipated address in Cairo, Egypt, on Thursday in hopes of reaching out to Muslims and begin a dialogue.
"I think what is important is that we demonstrate that the United States wants to pursue a different relationship and ensure that Muslims around the world understand the message of the United States," White House spokesman Robert Gibbs told reporters Tuesday.
"We have more in common than we have disagreement about, and I think that's what he wants to ensure that the vast majority of the Muslim world hears." Mamoun Fandy, a Mideast expert, said Muslims want more than talk; they want action.
They want to hear "that he is very serious about solving the Israeli-Arabian problem, that he is very serious about engaging the Muslim world on the basis of recognizing the equality," Fandy said. Video Watch what Egyptian residents want to hear from Obama "
The Arab-Israeli conflict is the most important, most intractable problem in the Muslim world. On Tuesday, Gibbs was quick to tamp down expectations of how much the president can accomplish with one speech.
In recent days, the president has been getting tough on Israel, pushing a two-state solution in meetings with a resistant Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu.