Obama reaches out to the Muslim world

Aware that people around the globe are watching him, particularly in the Muslim world, the US President, Barack Hussein Obama, used his inaugural speech to reach out to the community in the Islamic states.

"To the Muslim world, we seek a new way forward, based on mutual interest and mutual respect," Obama said in his inaugural speech. He is first African American President of the US.

"To those leaders around the globe who seek to sow conflict, or blame their society's ills on the West - know that your people will judge you on what you can build, not what you destroy," Obama said.

"To those who cling to power through corruption and deceit and the silencing of dissent, know that you are on the wrong side of history; but that we will extend a hand if you are willing to unclench your fist," Obama said in an apparent reference to the despotic regimes of the world.

And addressing the people of third world countries, Africa in particular, Obama said: "To the people of poor nations, we pledge to work alongside you to make your farms flourish and let clean waters flow; to nourish starved bodies and feed hungry minds."

Obama said: "To those nations like ours that enjoy relative plenty, we say we can no longer afford indifference to suffering outside our borders; nor can we consume the world's resources without regard to effect."

Observing that the world has changed, Obama said: "We must change with it."

Obama also paid glowing tribute to the US soldiers fighting the two wars in Iraq and Afghanistan.

"As we consider the road that unfolds before us, we remember with humble gratitude those brave Americans who, at this very hour, patrol far-off deserts and distant mountains," he said.

"We honour them not only because they are guardians of our liberty, but because they embody the spirit of service; a willingness to find meaning in something greater than themselves. And yet, at this moment - a moment that will define a generation - it is precisely this spirit that must inhabit us all," he said.