President Obama let the world know yesterday that the days of maverick US action are over — and that he’s no George W. Bush.
“I took office at a time when many around the world had come to view America with skepticism and distrust,” he said in his first speech to the UN General Assembly.
“Part of this was due to opposition to specific policies and a belief that on certain critical issues, America acted unilaterally, without regard for the interest of others.”
Obama drew some of his biggest applause from world leaders when he made none-too-subtle jabs at the Bush policies on interrogation of terrorism suspects and the Mideast peace process.
He said one of his first acts as president was to prohibit “without exception or equivocation, the use of torture by the United States of America.”
The president received an ovation when he said, “The United States does Israel no favors when we fail to couple an unwavering commitment to its security with an insistence that Israel respect the legitimate claims and rights of the Palestinians.”
He coupled that with a dig at UN apologists for Arab hard-liners:
“And nations within this body do the Palestinians no favors when they choose vitriolic attacks against Israel over a constructive willingness to recognize Israel’s legitimacy, and its right to exist in peace and security.”
In another shot at Bush policy, Obama said American would no longer be an obstacle to action to combat global warming.
“The days when America dragged its feet on this issue are over,” he said.
But the president also had warnings to two members of Bush’s “axis of evil.”
“If the governments of Iran and North Korea . . . are oblivious to the dangers of escalating nuclear arms races in both East Asia and the Middle East, then they must be held accountable,” he said.
The president’s basic message was that critics who denounced Bush’s “cowboy diplomacy” now have to pitch in.
“Those who used to chastise America for acting alone in the world cannot now stand by and wait for America to solve the world’s problems alone,” Obama said.
He criticized the “almost reflexive anti-Americanism” that was rampant during the Bush years.
His wide-ranging speech drew applause from Libyan leader Moammar Khadafy — but not Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad, sitting five rows away from Obama.
Administration officials praised Obama’s fresh approach to foreign policy after the Bush years.
“The United States has dramatically changed the tone, the substance and the practice of our diplomacy at the United Nations,” said Susan Rice, Obama’s UN ambassador.
Obama also sought to shore up foreign support for the war in Afghanistan.
“We have set a clear and focused goal: to work with all members of this body to disrupt, dismantle and defeat al Qaeda and its extremist allies,” he said.
In other developments:
* Obama met with Russian President Dmitry Medvedev and said they agreed that serious additional sanctions must be considered if Iran does not budge in its nuclear standoff.
* The president had his first meeting with Japan’s new prime minister, Yukio Hatoyama, who had pledged to review the large US military presence in Japan.
Aides said Hatoyama did not raise the main points of contention — the relocation of a US air station on Okinawa and Japan’s decision to no longer refuel ships involved in the war in Afghanistan.
* Obama received surprise support from Cuba’s Fidel Castro, who praised his “brave gesture” in the battle against climate change on Tuesday.
But Castro added, in a column published in Cuba’s state-run media, that Obama was part of a capitalist system that was “incompatible” with economic growth and a clean environment.
* Obama turned down five requests to hold a bilateral meeting with Britain’s Gordon Brown at the United Nations or G20 summit in Pittsburgh today, The Guardian reported. The tension stems from Brown’s handling of the Scottish decision to release the man convicted of the Lockerbie bombing.