Barack Obama’s Inauguration: Interview with SKAI TV Anchorwoman Sia Kosioni

January 19, 2009

Ambassador Daniel V. Speckhard
Live, Remote from Jefferson House, Athens, Greece

QUESTION:  Good evening, Mr. Ambassador.

AMBASSADOR SPECKHARD:  Good evening.

QUESTION:  Barack Obama has introduced a new way of communicating with citizens, Mr. Ambassador, in and out of the borders of the United States.  He has a fresh, he has a direct, approach free of racial, sexual or religious divides.  After November 4, have you noticed any change in the way the Greek people face American citizens, American people, or the United States in general?

AMBASSADOR SPECKHARD:  Oh, yes.  I’ve been very interested to see how enthused Americans are, as well as how enthused Greeks are, with the election of President Obama.  It’s something that’s really exciting because it’s an American election, but in fact, Greeks seem almost as excited as Americans to have this new American leadership. 

QUESTION:  And how do you explain that, Mr. Ambassador?

AMBASSADOR SPECKHARD:  Well, I think it’s in part, as Senator Clinton has said, who is going to be the new Secretary of State, that the United States can’t solve our problems without the world, and the world can’t solve its problems without the United States.  That we’re interconnected now and what goes on in one part of the world affects another.

So, in fact, the election of Barack Obama is going to be important not just for the United States but for the international community.  And he has, I think, given a message of hope and change that’s welcome not only in the United States, but also in Greece.

QUESTION:  Should people around the world expect a change in U.S. foreign policy, according to you?

AMBASSADOR SPECKHARD:  Well, I do expect that.  President-elect Obama has talked about change, and you’ll see it also in our foreign policy.   The challenges are going to remain the same.  But I think some of the style, and some of the direction, and some of the tone is going to be significantly different.

He has already talked about the importance of withdrawing troops from Iraq as rapidly as possible.  He’s put an emphasis on Middle East peace.  He’s talked about not only non-proliferation of weapons -- it is important -- but also [about] focusing on education, health problems, poverty around the world.  So I do think that we’re going to see some differences.

But, at the same time, he spoke in a very realistic tone to Americans and, I think, to the international community about the size of these challenges, and the need to have realistic expectations for how long it’s going to take to find solutions.

QUESTION:  Exactly.  Because Barack Obama has inspired millions of people and they expect a new American era as he has said.  And so, you think that it is not realistic to manage in a short time to fulfill the hopes of so many people?

AMBASSADOR SPECKHARD:  Well, what I think has been interesting to watch is that President-elect Obama has been speaking very plainly to Americans about keeping expectations in line.  And yet Americans are still enormously excited about his presidency and about his new administration.

And I think that’s because people in general do want to be told the truth about the challenges they face.  But they also want hope, and they want to sense that the leadership is really finding solutions.  And, in particular, they want to see unity rather than divisiveness in politics and in our country.

I think actually that’s what the world wants to see now, as well.  They want to see us working together.  President-elect Obama has talked about reaching out and restoring old alliances and forging new partnerships.  I think that’s a message of unity not only for the United States, but a message of unity for the international community.

And I think that’s a hopeful message that Greeks and Europeans can take and also be inspired by, while at the same time, understanding that these problems are not going to go away overnight.

QUESTION:  What is for sure is that he has a hard job to do.  Thank you very much, Mr. Ambassador.

AMBASSADOR SPECKHARD:  Eucharisto.  [Thank you.]