Obama reaches out to the Arab and Muslim world

US President Barack Obama's interview on the Saudi-backed Al-Arabiya television station - his first television interview since taking office - sent out the right signals to the Arab and Muslim world. The President's declaration that "Americans are not your enemy" was a powerful message to this important region in the world at a time when American engagement is needed more than ever.

President Obama is working hard at opening a new chapter in relations between the US and the Muslim and Arab world and trying to undo the harm caused to such a relationship by the previous US administration. He first promised respect for Muslims in his inaugural address. He then called Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas - his first call to a foreign leader - to promise US engagement in the Middle East. Soon after, he appointed George Mitchell special envoy to the Middle East and Richard Holbrooke special envoy to Pakistan and Afghanistan.

It is also understood that President Obama is planning a trip to Indonesia, the world's most populous Muslim nation - where he spent a few years of his childhood - and where he is expected to deliver a major speech on relations with the Muslim world.

The President's television interview on Al-Arabiya changed the tone of US policy towards the Middle East and the Islamic world. Mr Obama was conciliatory in his choice of words saying the US would learn from its mistakes, drop many of its preconceptions and listen. His assertion that "I have Muslim members of my family" must have gone down well among his audience.

President Obama promised a renewed effort at working towards a viable peace agreement between Israel and the Palestinians and while acknowledging that Israel's security was "paramount" he also emphasised - in contrast to the Bush administration - that solving the Palestinian-Israeli conflict would have a positive bearing on other crises in the region. He said: "It is impossible for us to think only in terms of the Palestinian-Israeli conflict and not think in terms of what's happening with Syria or Iran or Lebanon or Afghanistan and Pakistan."

Significantly, the US President made it a point to praise the Saudi peace plan which offers full Arab recognition of Israel in return for an Israeli withdrawal from all occupied territories and the creation of a Palestinian state. He also offered an olive branch to Iran saying: "If countries like Iran are willing to unclench their fist, they will find an extended hand from us."

If there ever was a time for direct US engagement in the Middle East and a new chapter in American relations with the Muslim world, it is now. The clashes between Israel and Hamas in Gaza - which continued last week despite a ceasefire - highlight the need for an honest broker in the region with real clout. Rightly so, President Obama said in his television interview that he would be judged "not by my words but by my actions". Such a declaration will no doubt be welcomed by Middle East watchers who are looking for real shift in US policy.

President Obama does not have an easy task in the Middle East. The divisions between Fatah and Hamas are a huge obstacle to peace and the upcoming Israeli election means that we expect little flexibility from Israel for the moment. However, Mr Obama has made a good start.

Last week Mr Mitchell, his special envoy, visited Egypt, Israel and the Palestinian territories. He met Palestinian Authority President Mahmoud Abbas but not any representatives of Hamas which controls Gaza. Should the Obama administration hold direct talks with Hamas?

Whether we like it or not, Hamas is now part of the equation and no eventual peace settlement is possible without them. It is pertinent to point out that the rise of Hamas was linked to Palestinian impatience with the peace process that yielded very few results and which saw an Israeli expansion of settlements on Arab land and a continual Israeli assault on the Fatah-controlled West Bank - with US approval. Mr Obama might well have to review the US ban on dealing with Hamas - with certain conditions attached, such as an end to attacks on Israel and the removal of the clause in Hamas' charter which calls for the destruction of Israel.

Dealing with Iran will be even more challenging. Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad has responded to Mr Obama's overture by demanding an apology for past US "crimes" committed against Iran, hardly the response of somebody who is genuinely keen to improve ties with Washington. Mr Ahmadinejad is likely to stand for re-election in June so here again we can expect little flexibility from Teheran.

While President Obama is right to say that he will be willing to engage in direct diplomacy with Iran over its nuclear programme, few observers expect to witness any change from the Iranian side, at least not until June's election is over.