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Obama reassuring image of 'Arab American'
01/08/2013 12:00 am
James Zogby
can Barack Obama, as he prepares to start his second term in the White House, to feel some satisfaction because positive attitudes toward the United States have risen again in a number of Arab countries.
Having dropped to record levels during the Bush years, led Obama's election in year 2008 and the first efforts of the new president for communication and rapprochement with the Arab and Islamic worlds to a rise in positive attitudes toward the United States across the Arab region. However, by mid-2011, and due to the fact that Guantanamo is still open, and U.S. troops are still in Iraq, and the White House surrendered to hardening Israeli apparently declined Arab attitudes toward America back to levels that prevailed in the Bush era.
however opinion poll conducted by Zogby Foundation in November 2012 revealed that the total positive evaluations of the United States has identified a rise in most Arab countries. Perhaps more important is that there is, at this moment, strong majorities in a number of countries see that the United States is currently a positive contribution to peace and stability in the Arab world. Referred to that in addition to the countries covered by the opinion polls conducted by «Zogby» usually (Morocco, Egypt, Lebanon, Jordan, Saudi Arabia and the UAE), the survey also included both Iraq and Palestine and Tunisia.
etc. refers to public opinion poll 2012 is that the decline in positive attitudes we have seen in the year 2011 toward the United States had stopped and returned assessments rise. In Saudi Arabia, for example, amounted to positive evaluations American high level an unprecedented 62 percent, while the back of positive attitudes in Jordan and the UAE to rise to where it was in 2009.
In Egypt, still evaluations of the United States is low, reaching 10 percent ; but that represents twice the rate of 5 positive that the Egyptians gave to the United States in the year 2011, but a far cry from the level of 30 percent, which it was when the face of Obama's speech 'new beginnings' to the Arab world from Cairo University platform. In Lebanon and Morocco, attitudes have remained constant from the United States the same. Perhaps the result remarkable really is the most than 80 percent of Jordanians and Emiratis who say they believe that «the United States contributes to peace and stability in the Arab world» - a rise dramatically compared with less than 10 percent who were carrying this view by year and a half . This compares with three-quarters of the Saudis, and half of Egyptians, and more than a third of the Lebanese and Moroccans who also agree that the United States play a positive role in the region. In all these cases, it was the rise since the year 2011 an important and essential.
while in those countries that do not have data about the year 2011, we find positive ratings low for the United States in general (13 percent in Iraq, and 2 percent in Palestine, and 19 percent in Tunisia ). However, the Iraqis and the Palestinians and Tunisians give in return high rates of the role of the United States Regional; where we find that 65 percent of Palestinians and 49 percent of Tunisians, and 40 percent of Iraqis, agree that the United States is to «positive contribution to the peace and stability in the Arab world ».
In an attempt to understand these results we interviewed a group of opinion-makers of journalists and politicians, told us that the reasons for this rise in rates, while they differ somewhat from country to country, reflecting the appreciation of the approach cooperative and most «modest» which took deals Obama with the Arab world. They point to this framework to satisfy Leaders pledge to withdraw from Iraq, and its work in building the coalition in Libya, and the diplomatic effort to support change in Syria, and its ethical approach towards democratic transition in Egypt. That negative point, of course, is the poor management regarding the Palestinian issue, but many maintain some hope that the United States of trying new intending to achieve Israeli-Palestinian peace during the second term.
While this rise in confidence and support must be matched by a welcome in Washington , it also comes accompanied by a warning. This is the second rise in positive evaluations of the United States during the term of the Obama presidency in the White House. Clearly, there is a sense of relief that the President has distanced from unilateral policies that was followed by his predecessor Bush. However, high hopes that the United States has the ability to drive.
Thus, the president begins his second term at a time granted by the Arab public opinion second vote of confidence. But the challenge is clear: it must act now, because the second loss of hope can be a final and irreversible.
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