How The Global Press Views Obama's Victory

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While Americans dance in the streets -- or hang their heads in dismay -- at Barack Obama's victory, newspapers across the globe are pondering what his election will mean for international business and their own countries' relations with Washington. Although an Obama Presidency will offer a change from the "burden of the Bush years" -- as Germany's Handelsblatt put it -- many publications worry that the expectations for Obama are so high that disillusionment may quickly follow on the euphoria of election night.



In Madrid, El Pais writes that "the bitter inheritance from Bush" has created formidable challenges for Obama. The foreign policy issues Obama will face, of course, are immense, but just as urgent will be fixing "an economic crisis whose magnitude never can be doubted Its social and political repercussions could affect the best laid plans Controlling its effects and trying to rein in runaway capitalism, with the cooperation of his allies, is the most urgent job for the next occupant of the White House."



The Parisian business newspaper Les Echos says Obama's election represents "a new America." The U.S., the paper writes, "suddenly grasps that its model has run out of steam. America long thought it could rely on the unparalleled strength of its military-industrial complex, which flourished under George Bush, to ensure its security and its influence. But even with a defense budget twice those of Europe and China combined, the superpower did not succeed in Iraq. And in relying on debt to finance the country's needs, Washington essentially closed its eyes to financial sleight-of-hand on Wall Street If this race to the White House has sparked one desire in the world, it is that the new President speak less about arms and more about the 'soft power' of Uncle Sam."



Business as Usual in India

India's Economic Times, a business daily, focuses on Obama's potential relations with New Delhi. While the new Administration will probably "break with the neocon tradition of trampling over international institutions and increasing global strife," the paper writes, there may be relatively little change in the subcontinent. "Even as an Obama Presidency might rethink some foreign policy issues there is unlikely to be any structural readjustment in Washington's policies. India can hardly get a President as keen as George W. Bush was on cementing strategic partnerships. And there is hardly any variation between the Democrat and Republican positions on critical, and deeply divisive, issues like the larger West Asian policy."



The Business Standard, another Indian daily, says Obama "could be a transformational leader who lifts politics to a higher plane, and addresses with intelligence and commitment the many challenges faced by his country and the world." Obama "has won the goodwill and acclaim of millions of people of other nationalities, which should help him shape foreign policy," the paper writes. "In short, Mr. Obama has the potential to be a great President. In America's and the world's interest, it must be hoped that he realizes that potential."



In Seoul, the JoongAng daily assesses Obama's impact on U.S. policies toward North Korea. Obama's willingness to meet with North Korea's leadership offers a big change from Bush's policy, the paper writes. But since Obama has said he wouldn't engage the North without extensive consultations with Seoul, "South Korea and the U.S. should use this opportunity to strengthen their alliance."



China Daily, an official English-language paper, says it hopes Obama can "bring America out of the present financial quagmire as soon as possible, and reenergize the world's largest economy." A healthy American economy "is in the interest of China and all other countries that trade with it We have full confidence that Sino-American relations can reach a new high that will benefit both countries and the world as a whole as President Obama takes the helm."



Restoring America's Reputation

Back in Europe, Britain's Daily Telegraph worries that Obama "could be an isolationist and protectionist President, reflecting the bruising that many Americans feel as a result of the painful military foray in Iraq and the global economic crisis." But the paper notes that the excitement and energy surrounding Obama's victory mean that "he could transform America's view of itself and the world's view of America, which has rarely been more reviled Restoring his country's reputation as a force for good in the world: That is the most powerful change that Obama can bring about."



London's Independent fears that Obama's ability to act will be constrained by the vastnesss of the problems he faces -- Iraq, Afghanistan, education, health care, and more. But "the greatest Presidents -- George Washington, Abraham Lincoln, and Franklin Roosevelt -- were great precisely because they overcame huge challenges. Today's fraught circumstances mean Barack Obama has the chance to join their number."



In Germany, the Frankfurter Allgemeine Zeitung writes that Obama's Presidency will help Europeans determine whether they "really have a quarrel only with Bush's leadership or indeed with America itself. People often said during the past eight years that they are by no means anti-American, just opposed to Bush. Often unnoticed amid the general Bush-bashing was that Congress played a role in many decisions and that America is at heart much more conservative than many people on the other side of the Atlantic want to believe."



And the business daily Handelsblatt writes that Obama will have enormous goodwill abroad, which should allow the U.S. to "leave the burden of the Bush years behind him, because the world will not hesitate to grant him a new beginning." Obama's election proves the ability of the U.S. to constantly renew itself. "Where other people take the safe path in the face of crisis and war, where they shy from risk, America undertakes the opposite. The country is putting its trust in a man who embodies hope and change -- with all the opportunity and also the insecurity this entails The citizens of the U.S. have decided in favor of a clean break, for a new beginning. This is courageous and such courage deserves huge respect."