US President Barack Obama said here Monday the United States was not at war with Islam and that it wanted to reinvigorate efforts towards creating a Palestinian state. Obama reiterated the US position after the new Israeli foreign minister said last week Israel was not bound by a US-backed deal to start talks on establishing a Palestinian state. “Let me be clear: the United States strongly supports the goal of two states, Israel and Palestine, living side by side in peace and security,” he said in a speech to Turkey's parliament. Chief Palestinian peace negotiator Saeb Erekat welcomed Obama's words, saying he had made a major commitment to the two-state solution. Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's office said Israel was committed to reach peace and would cooperate with the Obama administration to achieve that goal. Obama, on his first to a Muslim country as president, is trying to rebuild ties with Muslims after anger at the invasion of Iraq and war in Afghanistan, made more urgent by a resurgent Al-Qaeda and Taleban insurgency in Afghanistan. “Let me say this as clearly as I can: the United States is not at war with Islam. In fact, our partnership with the Muslim world is critical in rolling back a fringe ideology that people of all faiths reject,” Obama said. “But I also want to be clear that America's relationship with the Muslim world cannot and will not be based on opposition to Al-Qaeda. Far from it. We seek broad engagement based upon mutual interests and mutual respect. We will listen carefully, bridge misunderstanding, and seek common ground. “We will be respectful, even when we do not agree. And we will convey our deep appreciation for the Islamic faith, which has done so much over so many centuries to shape the world for the better including my own country. The United States has been enriched by Muslim Americans. Many other Americans have Muslims in their family, or have lived in a Muslim-majority country I know, because I am one of them.” ‘Iran must must choose' Obama also called Iran a “great civilization” and said he sought engagement with the Islamic Republic. He said: “The peace of the region will also be advanced if Iran forgoes any nuclear weapons ambitions (...) I have made it clear to the people and leaders of the Islamic Republic that the United States seeks engagement based upon mutual interests and mutual respect. We want Iran to play its rightful role in the community of nations, with the economic and political integration that brings prosperity and security. Now, Iran's leaders must choose whether they will try to build a weapon or build a better future for their people.” Obama's visit is also a nod to Turkey's regional reach and status as a secular democracy seeking European Union membership that has accommodated political Islam. Obama offered to improve cooperation in the fight against PKK separatist rebels and backed Turkey's troubled EU bid.
