CAIRO: In an effort to ease tensions and build bridges between the United States and the Muslim world, the US-Muslim Engagement Leadership Group signed a policy report titled “Changing Course: A New Direction for US Relations with the Muslim World, calling upon President-elect Barack Obama to address the critical importance of improving US-Muslim relations.
The group of 34 prominent Americans includes Abdallah Schleifer, distinguished journalism professor at the American University in Cairo (AUC).
“The report acts as a bridge between both groups as it acknowledges deep-rooted grievances the Muslim world has, it also notes the anger against the US is magnificent through the belief that the US supports Israel in the Palestinian conflict [.] and that since the invasion of Iraq the US seeks to dominate Muslim countries by force, said Schleifer at a news conference at AUC.
“The central message of the report is that the US government as well as religious, educational and media leaders build a coalition that turns the tide against extremism, he added.
In order to shrink the base of support for extremism, the report includes a strategy which calls on the US government as well as private leaders and their counterparts in Muslim countries to work together to advance four goals.
The first of these is to elevate diplomacy as the primary tool for resolving key conflicts involving Muslim countries and engaging both allies and adversaries in dialogue.
They are also required to support efforts to improve governance and promote civic participation in Muslim countries and advocate for principles rather than parties in their internal political contests.
The third goal is to help catalyze job-creating growth in Muslim countries to benefit both the US and Muslim countries economies.
“They have to create jobs, as unemployment is an important factor and it is a ground for extremism, said Schleifer.
The final goal is to improve mutual respect and understanding between Americans and Muslims around the world. The group has also outlined a call for action for Obama, which includes an immediate US commitment to prohibit all forms of torture, to begin negotiations between Israel and the Palestinians in the first 100 days of the new administration; and to engage Iran diplomatically, also within the first 100 days.
The policy report was first released and put in circulation on Sept. 24 and has been presented at the House Congressional Committee on Foreign Affairs and press conferences.
According to Schleifer, upon release the report has been taken to the highest levels in both the Obama and McCain campaigns, the two candidates for the American presidency.
Having been presented in September before the financial crisis, the timetable they have set for action in the report will definitely be affected, “But confronting global problems such as the Arab-Israeli conflict and the US-Iran relations will no doubt greatly affect the economy, he added.
The policy report has been the end product of meetings of the group members in the US during the past year and a half.
“[We are] a diverse group, for example there are those who support the war in Iraq and there are those who don’t but one thing they all agree on is that things have gone terribly bad in the past eight years and there needs to be a call for action, explains Schleifer.
“They are not intellectuals talking to intellectuals, but its intellectuals, former government officials, etc talking to the US government, he said.
The diverse and bi-partisan members of the group include former US Secretary of State, Madeleine Albright; Richard Armitage, former US Deputy Secretary of State under Colin Powell; Red Cavaney, President and CEO of the America Petroleum Institute; and Dennis Ross, consultant at the Washington Institute for Near East Policy and former US Special Middle East envoy and negotiator; as well as a Catholic bishop, a rabbi and the Imam of a New York mosque and the head of ISNA, the largest Muslim organization in the US.
The most interesting member in Schleifer’s opinion is Thomas Dine, principal of the Dine Group and former executive director of the American Israel Public Affairs Committee.
The report earned the endorsements of many influential US figures such as Leon E. Panetta, former White House Chief of Staff and US Representative and member of Iraq Study Group.
“This report gives the next administration specific action items to immediately improve US relations with the Muslim world and greatly increase US and global security. It is a strong complement to the report of the Iraq Study Group, he said.
