Talk to the Islamic world

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Barack Obama on June 4, 2009 in Cairo

The speech to the Islamic world was a keynote address , the US President Barack Obama on 4. June 2009 in Cairo held. This speech was intended to usher in a new chapter in relations between the United States and the Islamic world . In the English original, the speech was entitled "A New Beginning" (German: "Ein Neuanfang"). Obama spoke at Cairo University , fulfilling one of the promises he had made in his campaign - to deliver such a speech in the capital of a Muslim state within the first months of his presidency.

Topics and content

Obama's speech was divided into seven sections and devoted himself, in addition to general remarks on history and politics, the issues of violent extremism , Middle East conflict , nuclear weapons (with a reference to Iran), democracy , religious freedom , women's rights and economic development.

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opening

The President thanked the Egyptians for their hospitality and praised Al-Ahzar University as a “beacon of Islamic scholarship” and the University of Cairo as a “source of Egypt's progress”, which together represented the connection between tradition and modernity. With the Arabic greeting "as-salāmu ʿalaikum" he led on to the actual speech.

In the introduction to his speech, Obama referred to shared values ​​and quoted sura 33 , verse 70 of the Koran : Fear God and say what is right .

Middle East conflict

In the speech, President Obama reiterated his support for a two-state solution to resolve the Middle East conflict . Obama acknowledged the alliance of the United States with Israel and called the mutual alliance “unbreakable”, but described the stateless state of the Palestinian people as intolerable. The Palestinians have a right to exist just as the Israeli right to exist is legitimate. Obama called for an end to Israeli settlement construction in the West Bank and called for peace between Palestinians and Israelis.

Religious freedom

Obama pointed out that tolerance has a long tradition in the Islamic world. As an example, he cited Andalusia during the time of the Spanish Inquisition and Indonesia, where in his own childhood he experienced the free practice of religion by Christians in a predominantly Muslim country. People should be free to choose and practice their beliefs regardless of where they live. Obama described the trend as worrying for some Muslims to uphold their own belief by rejecting another belief. Religious diversity must be protected. In addition, one should not hide the aversion to a certain religion behind the cloak of liberalism.

Women's rights

The President advocates equality between men and women, but does not see this as a purely Islamic problem; it also extends to areas of daily life in America and other countries of the world. For Obama, equality is not a question of prohibiting veiling, rather the right to education for girls is a basic requirement for equality between men and women.

background

According to the White House press secretary Robert Gibbs , Egypt was chosen because "it is a country that in many ways represents the heart of the Arab world." There was previously speculation about the location where the speech would be given. Also Jakarta , Rabat , Amman and Istanbul have been considered in advance.

Preparing the speech

Obama gave his first speeches in a Muslim-majority country in Turkey at the beginning of April - on April 6, 2009 in front of the Turkish parliament and on April 7, 2009 in front of students at the Tophane Cultural Center. In the run-up to the speech, Obama met with the Jordanian King Abdullah II on April 21 and then with the Israeli President Shimon Peres on May 5 .

Barack Obama on May 28, 2009 with Mahmud Abbas in the Oval Office

On May 19, 2009, the American President spoke to Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu in the White House . No joint declaration was made at this meeting. While Obama identified a two-state solution as a priority and called for an end to Israeli settlement of the West Bank, Netanyahu refused to form an independent Palestinian state and insisted that Israel had the right to establish further settlements. Obama asked Netanyahu not to conduct military operations against Iran , having previously announced that he would start talks with the government in Tehran .

Obama met with Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas on May 28. Obama also told him that he would support an independent Palestinian state. The Palestinian President introduced Obama to his ideas for Obama's expected Middle East plan.

Mohammed Habib , vice-chairman of the Muslim Brotherhood , the largest opposition group in Egypt , refused Obama's trip to Cairo, describing it as "useless unless it involves a real change in US government policy towards the Arab and Islamic world ahead"

Reactions

From the European Union, the Vatican and UN Secretary General Ban Ki-moon there were consistently positive reactions to Obama's speech, which was seen as groundbreaking for future relations with the Islamic world.

In the Arab region and the Middle East, too, the speech was received largely positively by official bodies. The hope was expressed that it would result in concrete actions.

Pakistan's Foreign Ministry announced that the speech was viewed as a “very positive step” in overcoming the proverbial rift between the Islamic and the Western world.

The leader of the Palestinian Authority , Mahmoud Abbas , called the speech "free and open ... an innovative political step." A spokesman for the Palestinian organization Hamas welcomed the speech, which contained numerous contradictions, but nevertheless represented "a tangible upheaval". The leader of the Arab League , Amr Musa , said the speech was "balanced and offered a new vision of rapprochement in relations with the Islamic states".

In the eyes of Israel's Defense Minister Ehud Barak , the speech was a “courageous appeal” and a representation of Obama's universal principles that Obama wanted to share with the Muslim world. Shimon Peres , the Israeli President, praised Obama's statements as "full of vision, a courageous speech that calls for a commitment from all parties involved in the continuation of the Middle East peace process".

Die Zeit published a comment by Michael Thumann . Among other things, he wrote:

"He hit exactly the right note. But he remained vague on the crucial questions. ... Barack Obama was strong in the soft questions of the Western relationship with the Muslim world. Weaker, however, was his appearance on the hard questions, those in the near and middle East fueling the conflicts. "

Embed the speech in Obama's trip

US President Barack Obama giving his speech

Obama met with King Abdullah outside of Riyadh in Saudi Arabia ahead of the speech . He stayed at his stud farm before flying on to Cairo.

Immediately before the speech, Barack Obama held talks with Egyptian President Hosni Mubarak , where both discussed the situation between Israel and the Palestinians.

After his speech, the US President flew to Dresden , where he met Chancellor Angela Merkel on June 5 . A joint visit to the Dresden Frauenkirche and the Buchenwald concentration camp was on the program.

Web links

Commons : A New Beginning  - collection of pictures, videos and audio files
Wikisource: Barack Obama speech at Cairo University  - Sources and full texts

Individual evidence

  1. ↑ Ross Colvin: Obama to reach out to Muslims in Egypt speech (English) . May 8, 2009. Retrieved June 5, 2009. 
  2. ↑ after Paret , engl. Original text: Be conscious of God and always speak the truth. , see. Whitehouse.gov: Remarks by the President on a new Beginning, transcript of the speech dated June 4, 2009 ( memento of March 11, 2010 on the Internet Archive ), accessed June 8, 2009
  3. ↑ Barack Obama's Speech to Muslims , Die Welt . May 4, 2009. Retrieved May 5, 2009. “America's strong ties with Israel are well known. This connection is unbreakable. (...) The situation of the Palestinians is intolerable. America will not turn its back on the legitimate Palestinian hope of dignity, opportunity and a state of its own. (…) The only solution is to meet the expectations of both sides, with two states where Israelis and Palestinians live in peace and security. That is in Israel's interest, in the Palestinian interest, in the American interest and in the interest of the world. " 
  4. ↑ Barack Obama's Speech to Muslims , Die Welt . May 4, 2009. Retrieved May 5, 2009. "It's time to stop this settlement." 
  5. ↑ Barack Obama: Remarks by the President on a new Beginning ( English ) White House. June 4, 2009. Archived from the original on March 11, 2010. Retrieved June 8, 2009: “ Islam has a proud tradition of tolerance. We see it in the history of Andalusia and Cordoba during the Inquisition. I saw it firsthand as a child in Indonesia, where devout Christians worshiped freely in an overwhelmingly Muslim country. That is the spirit we need today. People in every country should be free to choose and live their faith based upon the persuasion of the mind, heart, and soul. (...) Among some Muslims, there is a disturbing tendency to measure one's own faith by the rejection of another's. The richness of religious diversity must be upheld whether it is for Maronites in Lebanon or the Copts in Egypt. And fault lines must be closed among Muslims as well, as the divisions between Sunni and Shia have led to tragic violence, particularly in Iraq. (...) Freedom of religion is central to the ability of peoples to live together. (...) We cannot disguise hostility towards any religion behind the pretence of liberalism. "
  6. ↑ Barack Obama: Remarks by the President on a new Beginning ( English ) White House. June 4, 2009. Archived from the original on March 11, 2010. Retrieved June 8, 2009: “ I reject the view of some in the West that a woman who chooses to cover her hair is somehow less equal, but I do believe that a woman who is denied an education is denied equality. (...) issues of women's equality are by no means simply an issue for Islam. (...) Meanwhile, the struggle for women's equality continues in many aspects of American life, and in countries around the world. "
  7. ^ Office of the Press Secretary: Briefing by White House Press Secretary Robert Gibbs ( English ) White House . May 8, 2009. Retrieved May 10, 2009: " … it is a country that in many ways represents the heart of the Arab world "
  8. ^ Bobby Ghosh: Behind Obama's Speech to the Muslim World . In: TIME . March 24, 2009. Retrieved June 5, 2009.
  9. ↑ America Service: Grand National Assembly of Turkey ( Memento from March 10, 2017 in the Internet Archive )
  10. ↑ America Service: Obama meets with Turkish students ( Memento from March 18, 2017 in the Internet Archive )
  11. ^ Office of the Press Secretary: The President and King Abdullah on Peace in the Middle East ( English ) White House . April 21, 2009. Archived from the original on June 10, 2009. Retrieved June 6, 2009.
  12. ↑ Office of the Press Secretary: Readout on President Obama's Meeting with President Shimon Peres of Israel ( English ) White House . May 5, 2009. Archived from the original on June 16, 2009. Retrieved June 6, 2009.
  13. ^ Remarks by President Obama and Prime Minister Netanyahu of Israel ( English ) Office of the Press Secretary. May 18, 2009. Archived from the original on June 3, 2009. Retrieved June 6, 2009.
  14. ^ Jesse Lee: Meeting with Abbas ( English ) White House . May 28, 2009. Archived from the original on May 30, 2009. Retrieved June 6, 2009.
  15. ↑ https://www.dailystar.com.lb/ArticlePrint.aspx?id=79144&mode=print
  16. ↑ a b Reaction: Obama's Cairo speech . BBC News, June 4, 2009
  17. ↑ a b Obama speech widely hailed but foes still skeptical . AFP, June 5, 2009. Retrieved from Yahoo News, June 6, 2009
  18. ↑ Vatican media welcome Obama's speech in Cairo as step toward peace ( Memento from June 10, 2009 in the Internet Archive ). Catholic News Service, June 4, 2009
  19. ^ Barack Obama's speech to Muslim world welcomed by the press . Telegraph, June 5, 2009
  20. ↑ Pakistan backs Obama's Middle East approach  ( page no longer available , search in web archives )  Info: The link was automatically marked as defective. Please check the link according to the instructions and then remove this notice. . The News, June 6, 2009@1@ 2Template: Dead Link / thenews.jang.com.pk  
  21. ↑ Israel says shares Obama's hopes for peace , Ynet News, June 4, 2009. Retrieved June 6, 2009.
  22. ↑ A speech with a gap
  23. ↑ Christi Parsons and Mark Silva: Apparent Osama bin Laden tape coincides with Obama visit ( English ) Los Angeles Times . June 5, 2009. Retrieved June 5, 2009.
  24. ↑ Barack Obama begins key Egypt speech ( English ) BBC News. June 4, 2009. Retrieved June 5, 2009.