Obama to Muslim world: "Much more work remains to be done"

In a highly-anticipated speech at the University of Indonesia, U.S. President Barack Obama described the country where he spent four years of his childhood as "part of me" and acknowledged that much more needs to be done to overcome the "years of mistrust" between the United States and Islam.

The speech was an update of the address he have 17 months ago in Cairo in which he promised a "new beginning" in U.S. Muslim relations. "In the 17 months that have passed we have made some progress, but much more work remains to be done," Obama said today, promising in particular to "spare no effort" to resolve the Israeli-Palestinian conflict.

His use of Indonesian phrases and references to traditional foods he remembers from his childhood drew cheers from the crowd, but Indonesia's largest Islamic organizations voiced skepticism over whether the speech signaled anything new in terms of policy.

The president was forced to cut short his twice-postponed homecoming to Indonesia by fears that the eruption of nearby Mt. Merapi would ground Air Force One, but Obama did have time to make the speech hold talks with President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono, and visit the Istiqlal mosque, the largest in Southeast Asia.

The next stop on Obama's four-country Asian tour is South Korea, where he will attend the G-20 summit and hold bilateral talks with Chinese President Hu Jintao.

Economy: World Bank President Robert Zoellick pushed back criticism of his proposal for a new international monetary system that includes a role for gold as a reference point.

Source: FP Foreign Policy