PRESIDENT Obama's interview with Al-Arabiya satellite television station on Monday night contains some nice and conciliatory words for the Muslim World, which today stands thoroughly alienated from the US as a result of the mindless policies of his predecessor. In an attempt to regain its confidence, Mr Obama even invoked the fact that some members of his family were Muslim. Although the gesture was welcome and most timely, in the final analysis it will be the deeds that would determine whether Muslims regard the US as their enemy or not. As it is, they feel that Washington is virtually holding all the cards in its hands to solve their problems but is doing just the thing that accentuates their misery. Israel, for instance, could not possibly act as a ruthless vandal and destroy Palestinians' lives and cities at will, in case the US thought fit to check it. That the Americans airlifted military supplies right when the recent Israeli savagery against the Gazans killing 1,300 of them was in full swing, would weigh heavily against taking Mr Obama's words at face value even though the incident took place before he took office. Nevertheless, his statement that he was for a Palestinian state side by side with Israel and had appointed an influential negotiator, George Mitchell, as special envoy for the Middle East would raise some hope among Muslims that the intricate issue might at last be seriously handled. Its resolution in an equitable fashion would, however, not be so easy in the backdrop of the recalcitrant Zionist entity, pampered and nourished at the hands of the US. Eagerly awaited now is the speech Mr Obama intends addressing Muslims of the world from a Muslim country's capital to see whether he outlines any specific positive approach towards them. Kashmir is another painful tragedy made worse by Washington's mollycoddling of New Delhi. Will he proceed according to his singularly apt judgement that the object of eliminating militancy from the region would remain elusive unless this problem is settled? President Obama reiterated the US determination to hunt down terrorists, which is quite understandable, but, read with his Defence Secretary's unambiguous declaration that aerial strikes on Pakistan's tribal region would continue and that Islamabad had been put in the picture, his statement makes ominous viewing. Somehow, the point that these attacks create a highly unfavourable climate for the US is lost on it, most likely, on account of the arrogance of power, which creates overweening confidence in the ability of its military might to change the course of events as it wishes. Hopefully, as he settles down in the Oval Office, he would have a better perspective of the rationale of increasing antipathy towards his country and make amends.