Obama ushers in new era of US `soft power`

Obama and his Secretary of State are assembling an experienced team of diplomats designed to end the confrontational style of the Bush years. Barack Obama will mark a radical break in American foreign policy this week by unveiling a team of diplomats tasked with ushering in a new era of dialogue with enemies abroad.

As Hillary Clinton prepares for Senate confirmation hearings, she will head a group of advisers who are virtual opposites to the appointees made by President George W Bush. While Bush favoured aggressive neoconservative ideologues, Obama has selected people whose doveish credentials seem impeccable.

They will be responsible for reversing the political unilateralism of the Bush years and opening direct negotiations with hostile states, potentially ranging from Syria to Cuba and Venezuela and maybe including Iran and even Islamic militant group Hamas.

The Obama foreign policy team that has emerged is focused on know-how and experience - often gained during the Clinton era. Many of the appointments have a clear focus on the Islamic world. Former UN ambassador Richard Holbrooke, who brokered a peace deal in the Balkans, will be appointed a special adviser to Afghanistan and Pakistan.

Former Middle East negotiator Dennis Ross will be a special adviser on Iran and the surrounding region, showing that Obama is keen on opening a diplomatic front in America's dispute with Tehran.

Ross has a history of personal involvement in Middle East peace talks, including numerous negotiations between Palestinians, Arab states and Israel.

Other picks are Kurt Campbell, another former Clinton official, who will be an assistant secretary of state for east Asia and the Pacific, and Philip Gordon, a former member of the National Security Council, will be assistant secretary of state for Europe.

"These are people who reflect Obama's world-view that sees the world less from a power-projecting perspective and more from looking at problems and seeing how to solve them," said Michael Fullilove, a fellow at two independent thinktanks, the Brookings Institution in Washington and the Lowy Institute in Australia.

Obama's choices back up his stated aims during his presidential election campaign. During the Democratic primaries, Obama said he would hold direct talks with hostile states. Despite a firestorm of criticism in the media - including from his then rival Clinton - Obama held to his position.

Now Clinton will be in charge of implementing it. "He showed he would not be dictated to by the foreign policy establishment. He also showed he would stick to his guns," said Fullilove.

The list of potential enemies for America to talk to is long. First and foremost is Iran, whose nuclear ambitions are the subject of deep suspicion in Washington and many other world capitals. Obama has held out the prospect of negotiating directly with Tehran about its programme, reversing years of open hostility from Bush's White House.

Other states where diplomatic relations could improve include Cuba, Syria, Venezuela and North Korea. The list could also include non-state groups such as Hamas. Last week the Guardian reported that Obama officials were open to establishing lines of contact with the Islamic militant group as a necessary step in trying to push forward the Middle East peace process.

An Obama aide subsequently denied that direct talks were envisaged. But, given the make-up of his emerging foreign policy team, it seems unlikely that Obama will simply replicate the style of the Bush administration when it comes to dealing with extremist groups.

The new strategy is not without its critics. Last week former US defence secretary William Perry caused a stir in Washington when he warned that Obama could face an Iranian nuclear crisis within a year, with perhaps Israel seeking a military strike at Tehran.

"President Obama will almost certainly face a serious crisis with Iran. Indeed, I believe that crisis point will be reached in his first year in office," he said. That view has been echoed by conservative thinkers, who say that a more engaged foreign policy with hostile powers will be a potentially disastrous mistake. "It will be a high-risk and extremely dangerous strategy. It would project weakness and indecision and not prevent a nuclear-armed Iran," said Nile Gardiner, a director at conservative thinktank the Heritage Foundation.

The new style of foreign policy in Washington is not likely to be entirely straightforward. The fundamental fact of America's sole superpower status will remain in place, despite its economic troubles.

The country will remain a vocal backer of Israel, even in the face of the war in Gaza. At the same time, Obama could expose deep splits with Europe over Afghanistan. He has repeatedly stressed the need for more Nato and US troops to be sent to Kabul, despite the war's unpopularity in Europe.

"He has been very forceful over the Afghanistan question. We may see an emerging transatlantic divide over Afghanistan," said Gardiner.

The in-tray ... and the top team Gaza - Opening talks with Hamas might help, but Obama will remain a loyal ally of Israel.

Iran - Obama plans more diplomacy to combat Iran's suspected ambitions to develop a nuclear bomb. This might work, or it might be what Tehran has been waiting for to go ahead with such a project.

Afghanistan - Obama aims to send more US and Nato troops to Afghanistan to win the war and repeat the success of the surge in Iraq. But Europe may want to say no to this idea.

Climate change - Obama will want to reverse the position of the Bush years and take a leading role. Difficult at a time of economic crisis.

Meanwhile, Barack Obama has selected a team of politicians and diplomats to take the reins on foreign policy. They include:

Hillary Clinton - Obama's one-time rival is now his public presence abroad as secretary of state. She is a voice of pragmatism, not ideology.

Richard Holbrooke - The former UN ambassador, deeply involved in bringing peace to the Balkans in 1995, is set to be the new special adviser on Pakistan and Afghanistan.

Dennis Ross - Ross was part of numerous negotiations between the Israelis, Arab states and the Palestinians in the 1990s. He is set to be a special adviser on Iran and the Middle East.