What Happened to Obama’s Standing Around the World?

New York-The strategy of the twin tracks adopted by the US Administration to deal with the various issues, from Iran to Afghanistan and even with the Taliban, may be a clear policy in the mind of President Barack Obama and in the minds of the leaders of his administration, especially the academics among them. Yet this does not negate a noteworthy state of affairs, which is what this strategy has produced in terms of reducing trust in the United States, increasing the confusion regarding what this administration has in mind, and escalating the fear from wagering on this superpower – one which is heading towards isolationism in times of globalization, and whose hegemony as a superpower is receding while the likes of China fill the vacuum at the international level and the likes of Iran and the Taliban seek to impose a de facto situation at the regional level. It is a crisis of standing which is arousing concern at the global level, because of what it involves in terms of messages signifying that anyone can climb the American wall, which has become so low.

I kind of thought I was saying that Obama is not doing anything. He's certainly not doing anything quickly. The surge in Afghanistan for example - it took him months to decide to go ahead, a process which largely nullifed its effect.

I'm not saying there isn't trouble now, but it's nothing like what there could be if he doesn't start making definite stands quickly. Suppose the Argentine make another grab for the Falkland Islands? His "even-handed" approach down there might have won the US a few friends in South America, but it increases the possibility of conflict, because it makes the Argentines think that the US might not intervene in some way. What happens if the escalating situation in Korea erupts? Or if Syria knocks together a pan-arab alliance to have another go at the "Zionist State"? There won't be time then to "work out differences" or say that "there's faults on both sides", or "refer things to the United Nations". If the US does not react decisively to threats to its allies, then at the least they will draw away from those alliances, cancelling lucrative contracts and trade agreements. At worst it could precipitate full scale wars, ones that might even lead to the use of nuclear weapons.

“What Happened to Obama’s Standing Around the World?”

It seems that the rest of world and over half of the US have buyers remorse. Most of us here at FR knew what we were getting woth the empty suit. I don’t want to be a told you so, but I told you so!

That’s the problem - they expected him to DO something.

He’s just standing around (in their eyes).

We just wanted him to stand around, of course. But then he started to DO something...

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