Barack Obama has outlined what he believes will be the main challenges he will face in his first two years in the White House, including closing Guantánamo Bay, withdrawing US troops from Iraq and employing a multilateral approach to the Middle East.
In an interview with Time magazine, who named the president-elect as their Person of the Year 2008, he also promised tax cuts for 95% of working Americans and said the health and school systems would be domestic priorities.
"On foreign policy, have we closed down Guantánamo in a responsible way, put a clear end to torture and restored a balance between the demands of our security and our constitution? Have I drawn down US troops out of Iraq, and have we strengthened our approach in Afghanistan — not just militarily but also diplomatically and in terms of development? " he told the magazine, which named him their Person of the Year 2008.
Obama said managing the transition of military power in Iraq would be a top priority, as was taking a multilateral approach to foreign policy. "Managing a more effective strategy in Afghanistan will be a top priority. Recognising that it is not simply an Afghanistan problem but it's an Afghanistan-Pakistan-India-Kashmir-Iran problem is going to be a priority.
"Sorting through our policy with respect to Iran effectively — that will be a priority. Dealing with our transatlantic alliance in a more constructive way and trying to build a more effective relationship with the newly assertive and, I believe, inappropriately aggressive Russia."
The Obama interview coincides with the announcement that more than 11,000 US troops will provide support, air defence and medical assistance at his inauguration on January 20 next year. General Gene Renuart, head of the US northern command, said although a "big chunk" of military and national guard units would do ceremonial work, the troops would also contain a contingent on alert to respond to a potential chemical attack. There also will be some 8,000 police and security agents.
Renuart said planners are working under the assumption that a terrorist or rogue element might try to interrupt the inauguration. "Not because we see a specific threat, but because [for] an event this visible and this important and this historic, we ought to be prepared to respond if something does happen.".
Comparing the economic situation to that of Japan in the 1990s, Obama warned that an American recession could take as long as a decade to recover. "I don't have a crystal ball, and economists are all over the map on this. I think we should anticipate that 2009 is going to be a tough year. And if we make some good choices, I'm confident that we can limit some of the damage in 2009 and that in 2010 we can start seeing an upward trajectory on the economy.
"But this is a difficult hole that we've dug ourselves into. You know, Japan found itself in a somewhat similar situation in the 90s, made some poor decisions, didn't squarely face some of the problems in its banking system and, despite significant stimulus, still saw this thing drag on for almost a decade."
Americans earning over £750,000 would go back to 1990s tax rates, he said. "In part to pay for the tax cut for people who desperately need it, I've proposed that people who are making more than a quarter-million dollars a year lose the tax cuts they received from George Bush and that we go back to the rates they had in the 1990s. And that is a pledge I intend to keep."
Obama said tackling climate change and the nuclear question would still be a priority. "Now, I mention those things, but keep in mind that some of the long-term priorities I identified in the campaign remain just as urgent today. I already mentioned nuclear proliferation. I already mentioned climate change. I think dealing with development and poverty around the world is going to be a critical component of our foreign policy. It's good for our security and not just charity."
