Media Reaction: "President Barack Obama's Inauguration"

UNCLAS COTONOU 000242

PARIS FOR ARS (DWINTON)
DEPARTMENT FOR AF/PD (ANYASO, TITUS, LISENBY),AF/W (ACOOK)

SIPDIS

E.O. 12958: N/A
TAGS: OEXC KPAO SCUL BN
SUBJECT: Media Reaction: "President Barack Obama's Inauguration"


1. Summary: The Beninese media reacted positively to President
Barack Obama's speech in Cairo on June 4. The speech generated
several articles and comments in the leading print and electronic
media. End summary.


2. The most prominently published articles include:

June 5
The right-of-center independent daily L'Autre Quotidien, relaying
the British News Agency Reuters, carried an article titled
"Relations between the United States and the Muslim world: Barack
Obama wants a new deal."
The author of the article began his story by mentioning that at the
University of Cairo, Barack Obama made a speech in which he pled for
a new deal in the relations between the United States and the Muslim
world. The author of the article pursued his analysis with the
following comments:
..."In willing to turn the page of the Bush era, the American
President affirmed that the relations between Washington and Muslim
countries should be based on respect and mutual interest, not on
competition." ... "The Chief of the White House did not announce any
new initiative to resolve the Middle-East conflict.
L'Autre Quotidien also carried an Agence Panafricaine's article
titled "Reactions to President Obama's speech in the Middle-East."
Below are excerpts from the article:
"The Palestinian Authority welcomes the new American approach."...
"In his Cairo speech, Barack Obama showed that there is a new,
different American policy regarding the Palestinian issue."... "The
Director of the Israeli press Office has the feeling that President
Obama's message held no major surprises, and that the current
disagreements between Israel and the United States were well
understood." ... "The Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu
refused to take a position for a Palestinian State and qualified as
unrealistic the US request for a total ban on Israeli settlement."


In its evening news program on June 4, the state-controlled TV
station, ORTB, carried the following comments on President Barack
Obama's speech:
"A maneuver of seduction or a deliberate expression of a new deal
between the United States and the Arab world?"
"Barack Obama is ready to write a new page with his Middle-East
partners, a new page based on mutual respect and the promotion of
human rights." ... "Barack Obama's ideology has nothing to do with
the Bush policy."... "This speech will undoubtedly leave some
impact."


3. In local restaurants and coffee bars, the Beninese public in
general applauded President Barack Obama's speech and described the
new President of the United States as God's messenger who will save
the world.

Rawlings