China Daily: We Wish Obama Well
By Li Hong and Du Wenjuan,
chinadaily.com.cn
Like American people on the other side of the Pacific, we are excited, too, at the landslide win of Democrat Barack Obama, who will become the 44th President of the United States of America on January 20 next year.
We wish him all the best in bringing America out of the present financial quagmire as soon as possible, and re-energize the world's largest economy with his brand-new ideas and vision. A strong US economy is in the interest of China and all other countries that trade with it.
We also hope the good momentum of a relatively amicable and constructive bilateral relationship between China and the US will sustain and extend during the incoming four years of the Obama presidency.
Running on promises to deliver pivotal "changes" which America crucially needs, President-elect Obama and his incoming administration face daunting challenges: to plug the loopholes of a precarious Wall Street financial system, rebuild a solid footing for a backsliding economy, to re-charter an American foreign policy that will move away from pre-emptive doctrine to one of resolving nation-to-nation disputes on the table, and to embrace more consultation on the world arena while avoiding confrontations.
We have every reason to anticipate a more cooperative and talk-savvy new America, that contributes to the United Nations efforts in settling varied disputes, that leads in a renewed approach to deliver new wealth for the Earth's inhabitants, that protects the environment and develops new and clean energies, that spearheads new and high technology innovations, and, that always upholds peace and economic growth.
Two facts apparently factored in Obama's election triumph. The crushingly dreadful economic contraction, triggered by the sub-prime crisis and a later meltdown of America's banking system, persuaded many voters to alienate the incumbent Republican Party candidate and embrace the Democrat challenger. And, Obama's consistent opposition to the 2003 Iraq War, in tandem with the majority American consensus, built up his victory too.
Imminently, President-elect Obama will focus on filling in his cabinet with able and cool heads, healing a national divide created by the general election, uniting both the conservatives and the liberals, and bolstering the economic fundamentals for a re-start. Now, the pinch of slumping wages, increasing factory closures and growing unemployment is being tasted bitterly, not only in the US, but also many other continents, including here in China.
Obama's campaign promise to levy more taxes on families that make US$250,000 annually, many believe here, might help enlarge America's coffer revenues, and help diminish its appallingly spiraling budget deficit, which, we think will help America a lot. But, in the short run, ratcheting up investment in infrastructure and small and medium businesses in the US will yield precious jobs, and prevent its economy from jumping off the cliff.
Chinese online readers have had enormous interest in the Republican-Democrat battle for the White House, not solely because of America being the world's most powerful nation, but also on the policies coming out of the Oval Office north of the Washington Monument that will have repercussions for the world, China included.
We hope that America will be a strong proponent for world peace, not a trigger for disputes or even conflicts. Knotty issues including Iran and DPRK nuclear problems can be solved on the negotiating tables.
And, Washington-Beijing ties must continue to be considered as one of the most important bilateral relationships. During the past few years, communications between our two peoples have become more reciprocally responsive and more amicable. As a growing market with 1.3 billion people, China is going to consume more goods made in America, creating job opportunities for the US And, as China is climbing on the industrial ladder, more lower-value and labor-intensive processing jobs will move to other developing countries, which will help set a trade balance between the two heavyweight economies.
We deem that the strategic dialogues and high-caliber talks of commercial and economic issues between the two countries established in the past few years, will continue to serve as good platforms for the two to discuss, and reach consensus on important issues. In addition, more than 1.3 billion Chinese living in China and overseas hope President Obama will continue to play a constructive role in facilitating the increasingly friendly engagement between the Chinese mainland and Taiwan.
In all, we have full confidence that Sino-American relations could reach a new high that will benefit both countries and the world as a whole, as President Obama takes the helm.
Israelis Cautiously Optimistic About Obama
Foreign Confidential....
By Peter Hirschberg
Bloomberg
Israeli leaders have become accustomed to President George W. Bush's reticence to push them into making tough decisions. In Barack Obama, they are bracing for a president who may not be so accommodating.
Obama's plan to engage Iran in direct negotiations over the Shiite Muslim state's drive to enrich uranium to produce nuclear weapons could limit Israel's option to use military force to block the program. And his pledge to be actively involved in peace talks between Israel and the Palestinians could lead him to exert pressure against settlement-building and travel restrictions on the Palestinians in the West Bank.
``There could be more pressure on Israel to take more risks, like removing security checkpoints in the West Bank,'' said Efraim Inbar, director of the Begin-Sadat Center for Strategic Studies at Bar-Ilan University near Tel Aviv. ``The Iranians will exploit Obama's willingness to talk to them to play for time.''
As Obama prepares his transition, Israeli politics are in a state of limbo brought on by Foreign Minister and Kadima leader Tzipi Livni's inability to form a governing coalition. The move sparked national elections, which will be held in February 2009.
Opinion polls show Livni and Likud opposition leader Benjamin Netanyahu in a tight race. A poll in the Haaretz newspaper on Oct. 31 showed Likud and Kadima winning 31 seats each in the 120-seat parliament.
Gaza Withdrawal
Obama's dealings with Netanyahu probably would be frostier than with Livni. The Likud leader, informally known as Bibi, opposed Israel's withdrawal from Gaza in 2005 and is against talking to the Palestinians about Jerusalem, which both sides claim as their capital.
``There's a good chance that relations between Obama and Bibi will not be healthy,'' said Roni Bart, a research fellow at the Tel Aviv-based Institute for National Security Studies. Livni would enjoy a smoother rapport because of her ``more moderate'' views, he said.
Through spokesman Yossi Levy, Netanyahu said of Obama that ``I am certain that we will work together to bring about peace, security and prosperity to the region.''
Livni strongly supported Israel's exit from Gaza in August 2005 and as foreign minister has been responsible for negotiations with the Palestinians over a comprehensive peace agreement.
Reaction
Livni said today that Israel hoped for ``close ongoing strategic consideration with the new administration.'' Speaking of Obama's July visit, she said in an emailed statement: ``The Israeli people were impressed with his commitment to the peace and security of Israel.''
When Obama visited Israel in July, he said he would not wait ``until a few years into my term or my second term'' to get the Israeli-Palestinian peace process moving.
He has also said that Israel will have to make concessions if it wants to reach an agreement with the Palestinians over the status of Jerusalem, the fate of Palestinian refugees and the borders of an independent Palestinian state. ``Israel will have some heavy stones to carry,'' Obama said in remarks to the American Israel Public Affairs Committee in Washington in May.
In addition to Israel's political stalemate, Obama will have to decide how to deal with the Islamic Hamas movement, which seized control of Gaza in June last year, routing the forces of Palestinian Authority President Mahmoud Abbas. Hamas, which had won parliamentary elections in January 2006, refuses to recognize Israel and has said it will not abide by previous Israeli-Palestinian agreements.
Internal Disputes
``With a new administration this is a very suitable time for the Palestinians to solve their internal disputes,'' said Ziad Abu Zayyad, a former minister in the Palestinian Authority. ``If we are not unified, Obama will put the blame on the shoulders of the Palestinians.''
While Israel sees its relationship with the U.S. as its greatest strategic asset, relations haven't always been harmonious. When Netanyahu was prime minister between 1996 and 1999, he argued with then-President Bill Clinton over peace moves with the Palestinians. He also tried to galvanize Republicans in Congress to undercut Clinton's demands.
There has been more unanimity among Israeli leaders on Iran than on the Israeli-Palestinian conflict or talks with Syria.
Successive Israeli leaders have supported tough sanctions against Iran as a means of halting its nuclear program, while never ruling out the possibility of a military strike. The option of sending war planes to bomb nuclear reactors in Natanz and Bushehr may recede if Obama begins talking to Iran.
``Israel should initiate discussions with the Americans to ensure its interests are safeguarded when the U.S. does engage Iran,'' said Shlomo Ben-Ami, who served as foreign minister in the government of Ehud Barak from 2000 to 2001.
Up at Night
Obama has raised concerns in Israel that he will be more sympathetic to the Palestinians than was Bush.
``To be honest, Obama doesn't make us sleep well at night,'' Eitan Haber, who was a senior aide and negotiator for former Prime Minister Yitzhak Rabin, wrote in the Yediot Ahronot newspaper last month. ``We are about to see a president who has nothing to do with Judaism, Jews, and the State of Israel.''
Alon Pinkas, a former Israeli consul general in New York, is comforted by Obama's choice of advisers, who he says are sympathetic to Israel's needs. One example is Dennis Ross, who served as a top Mideast peace negotiator under Clinton. ``Obama is surrounded by Jewish advisers,'' Pinkas said.
Ben-Ami says he is confident Obama will not make decisions that undercut Israel's strategic interests.
``America knows very well, including Obama, that Israel can't accept Palestinian refugees,'' he said, referring to a key Palestinian demand that refugees who left in 1948 and 1967 be allowed back into Israel. ``No one is going to push Israel to make unreasonable concessions.''Asian Markets Gain on Obama Victory
Tokyo's key Nikkei index closed nearly 4.5 percent higher, while the Hang Seng in Hong Kong is trading nearly 6 percent higher in late afternoon trading. Markets in Seoul, Sydney and Wellington are also trading higher.
Asian markets are also up after Tuesday's strong showings in the U.S. and European markets. U.S. share prices gained as much as 4 percent, while European indexes rose as much as 5 percent.
The gains come as a key measure of banks' willingness to lend to each other improved again. Before recent declines in the "Libor" interest rate, international credit markets had been stalled, making the economic crisis worse.
Credit markets began flowing as governments around the world offered trillions of dollars in emergency aid to financial institutions and cut interest rates in a bid to restore bankers' confidence. Australia cut its key interest rate today and the European Central Bank and the Bank of England are widely expected to slash rates on Thursday.
But that news may be tempered by a new United Nations' report that says the financial crisis has spread to international trade, hitting developing nations that export commodities particularly hard.
The U.N. report says a key measure of demand for trade, which tracks shipping costs, has fallen dramatically over the past few months.Tuesday, November 04, 2008
Wednesday, 5 November 2008
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