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The thing that we can do most importantly is serve as a good role model, he told BBC television in an interview on the eve of a trip to Europe and Egypt, where he plans to deliver a much-anticipated speech to the Muslim world.
He said he hoped his visit would begin a new relationship between America and the wider Muslim community.
Democracy, rule of law, freedom of speech, freedom of religion, those are not simply principles of the West to be hoisted on these countries - but rather what I believe to be universal principles that they can embrace and affirm as part of their national identity, Obama said.
He said the danger was when the United States or any other country thought they could impose these values on another country with different histories and cultures.
(But) absolutely you can encourage and I expect we will be encouraging, he added.
Asked whether he regarded Egyptian President Hosni Mubarak, whose country Amnesty International claims holds thousands of political prisoners, as authoritarian, Obama said: I tend not to use labels for folks.
I haven't met him, I've spoken to him on the phone, Obama added. He has been a stalwart ally, in many respects, to the United States. He has sustained peace with Israel, which is a very difficult thing to do in that region.
Asked about Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's defiance of Obama's call for a settlement freeze, the president said: it's still early in the conversation.
He noted he had only met Netanyahu once, at the White House in May.
I think we have not seen a set of potential gestures from other Arab states, or from the Palestinians, that might deal with some of the Israeli concerns, he said.
But I do think we're going to be able to get serious negotiations back on track ... because not only is it in the interest of the Palestinian people to have a state, it's in the interest of the Israeli people to stabilise the situation there.
And it's in the interest of the United States that we've got two states living side by side in peace and security.
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We already have a role model which America should be following. Allah says in the glorious quran: "indeed in the messenger of Allah(Muhammad s.a.w) you have an excellent example"
Part One:In an interview on London BBC( 1st June 2009 and in his speech in Egypt, President Barack Obama has said that the United States can be a role model to the Muslim world. Religiously brought up still “half baked” guys like me are unable to comprehend the Role Model that President Obama is talking about to Muslim nations. Once we accept the US as the role model, Obama hopes the Clash of Civilization can come to an end. On the brighter side the US has the heroic American independent liberation movement that nations like Palestine, Afghanistan and Iraq can emulate. The US’s absolutely amazing development and leadership in science, technology, nuclear physics, military hardware, cyberspace, and its people’s adventurism, enquiring spirit , friendship and hospitality, equality of citizens under the constitution, democracy and Judeo Christian moral values may to a large extent be Role Models.
Part Two: But on the negative side we have the American model on hippie culture, drug culture, gun culture, Playboy and Penthouse culture, violence, legalising and churches solemnising same sex marriages and gay liberation, internet pornography, posting paedophilia on internet( but accessing is illegal: a terribly illogical law) free love, explicit sex on screen, pre-marital sex relations, public nudity and about 45% of the children born out of wedlock, 70% of the marriages ending in divorce, prison population among the highest in any country and so on and so forth. There are a lot of good things from the positive model but copying the entire American culture as Role Model is a sure recipe for disaster and decadence if Muslims wish to preserve the well balanced and middle-way Islamic Culture.
Vaz That is not your concern, if you have a religion stick to it or change it that is your business, if you are an atheist, you live in a free world, you have the freedom to reject God or believe in a 1001 gods, but you have no business to poke your nose into other people's faith, if the lunatic fringe in any religion becomes aggressive and law-breaking, deal with them following national and international laws, churches in the UK solemnize the marriages between the homosexuals and probably in the future between lesbians, that is how 21st century Christianity is evolving in Europe, leave us alone, our scholars will reinterpret and change Islam based on circumstances, do not commit trespassing into other peoples carefully tended property please and create a hate campaign unknowingly or deliberately
President Obama is paying a heavy bill for the damage done by Bush administration in antogonising the Muslim world by their arrogant policies. The Obama's slogan of 'Mutual respect and mutual interest' is the right policy to adopt. Mutual respect could be achieved only when U.S. stands for Justice in Palentine and other Muslim issues. Otherwise mere statements will not improve the relationship.
With crooks and bad managers in their country, the US has led the world into a bad economic recession. I don't suppose Obama would expect the Muslim world to copy that! But, flippancy aside, what Obama and the non-Muslim world have to tell the Muslim world is that the vast majority of Muslims have to shake their minds out of the 8th century in which they are stuck and start living in the 21st century.