Palestine must top agenda

Barack Obama has delivered his first speech as president of the United States. Two million people attended the inauguration, which was broadcast all around the world. And Obama fever is still strong in the US.

As expected, the speech was widely welcomed. But it was rather generic and didn't focus on the hottest issues, among others the Israeli-Palestinian conflict.

When he was elected, Obama knew his task as President would be Herculean. Two-and-a-half months after his election, the situation is worst. The economic crisis, far from being brought under control, has soared and the unemployment rate is sky-rocketing. It would have already been difficult to finance Obama's social policies, especially the modernising of the health care and the education systems. But money is even more scarce than previously thought.

On diplomatic issues, Obama imagined, on November 4, that he could face the Iraqi withdrawal and the Afghan surge against the Taliban, while pressing Pakistan to cooperate. He also imagined that he could deal with the India-Pakistan issue as well as with Iran. He could have hoped that the Israeli elections planned for February 10 would clear the way for negotiations with the Palestinians and for a peace agreement. This could have been a historical achievement. Instead of this Obama got the Gaza war.

Not only have people been killed and buildings destroyed but also the current peace process. Hate is even more widespread, moderate Arabs are on the defensive, the radicals on the rise and the new Israeli Cabinet will probably be a more hawkish one.

Would Obama dare put pressure on Israel to ensure there is some progress towards peace? That would be in the America's interest. If Washington wants to seriously fight political and religious extremism in Muslim world, an agreement on the Palestinian issue would be of the utmost importance. It was true in November, it is even more true today after the Gaza war.

Obama is conscious of the fact that the two Bush terms have undermined the image of the US in the world. America has never been more unpopular. The new president's charisma and personality could help mend relations between America and the world. People are glad to see that - as Obama pointed out - US voters could elect for the White House someone who would not have been served in a restaurant 60 years ago.

The promise to tackle the nuclear and climate change issues along with friends and foes paves the way for better relations with Moscow and Beijing. It is a positive step. But, in the long run, it would not be enough to change drastically the way the US is perceived.

Pacifist speeches, words of friendship, promises to have a smart US policy, to be a positive player on the international stage without being aggressive, and the move to close down Guantanamo are welcome. But if Obama wants to be taken seriously in the Muslim world, he needs to achieve something tangible on the Palestinian issue.

We can understand that he would want to be cautious during the first few days. But time is running out and Obama's legacy will largely depend on results on this central issue.

Besides, there have to be changes in US policy on the Middle East.

Let's hope that he finds a balance between America's interests and others nations' interests.

Dr Pascal Boniface is the founder and director of IRIS (Institut de Relations Internationales et Strategiques). He has published or edited more than 40 books dealing with international relations, nuclear deterrence and disarmament, European security and French international policy.