Barack Hussein Obama and the Muslim World

Making News

Hunt for Survivors of Italian Earthquake ()

The tolls of deaths, injuries and homeless are rising in central Italy where a 6.3 magnitude earthquake has destroyed villages and seriously damaged the 13th Century city of L'Aquila.  Phil Stewart is a correspondent for Reuters in Rome.

Guests:

• Phil Stewart: Correspondent, Reuters

Main Topic

Obama in Turkey Reaches Out to the Islamic World ()

In his first visit to a Muslim country as President, Barack Obama told the Turkish parliament today, the US “is not and will never be at war with Islam.” He invoked his Muslim father and his residence in a Muslim country, and called Turkey's secular democracy a model for the 21st Century. We talk about Turkey's importance to the US and the Western countries and about the so-called “soft” but conservative religious conversion of Islamic youth worldwide.

Guests:

• Semih Idiz: Columnist, Milliyet
• Bulent Aliriza: Director of the Turkey Project, Center for International and Strategic Studies
• Robin Wright: Public Policy Scholar Woodrow Wilson Center, @wrightr
• Navtej Dhillon: Fellow, Brookings Institution

Links:

• Washington Post/ABC News poll on Islam, outreach to Muslims
• CSIS' report, 'Turkey’s Evolving Dynamics'
• Wright's 'Dreams and Shadows: The Future of the Middle East'

Reporter's Notebook

Obama Wants to Eliminate Nuclear Weapons ()

In the aftermath of yesterday's launch, the UN Security Council failed to condemn North Korea.  But in Prague yesterday, President Obama said it's the responsibility of the US to lead the way to nuclear disarmament. He pledged to take what he called “concrete steps toward a world without nuclear weapons.” Daryl Kimball is Executive Director of the Arms Control Association, which advocates what it calls “practical solutions” to eliminating weapons-related security threats.

Guests:

• Daryl Kimball: Executive Director, Arms Control Association