He came, he spoke, and not much changed

I don’t disagree with Steve Walt’s read of Obama’s Ankara speech (see Marc Lynch as well), or other hosannahs being heaped on Obama for his European tour.  Barack Obama acquitted himself well in London, Strasbourg, Prague and Ankara.  U.S. soft power would appear to be in a better place than it was, say, a year ago. Does it ...

By , a professor of international politics at the Fletcher School of Law and Diplomacy at Tufts University and co-host of the Space the Nation podcast.

I don't disagree with Steve Walt's read of Obama's Ankara speech (see Marc Lynch as well), or other hosannahs being heaped on Obama for his European tour.  Barack Obama acquitted himself well in London, Strasbourg, Prague and Ankara.  U.S. soft power would appear to be in a better place than it was, say, a year ago.

I don’t disagree with Steve Walt’s read of Obama’s Ankara speech (see Marc Lynch as well), or other hosannahs being heaped on Obama for his European tour.  Barack Obama acquitted himself well in London, Strasbourg, Prague and Ankara.  U.S. soft power would appear to be in a better place than it was, say, a year ago.

Does it mean anything, however?  I also don’t disagree with Gideon Rachman’s analysis of Obama’s trip in the Financial Times:

On many levels, the new US president’s first tour of Europe was indeed a triumph. Mr Obama was articulate, ambitious and charming. His personal style has a touch of the emperor and a touch of the rock star – but with an appealing humility that is common to neither profession….

So Mr Obama scored very highly for style and ambition on his European tour. But can he deliver the substance? Here, the verdict has to be much more doubtful – for reasons that have more to do with the sheer difficulty of the situation he has inherited, rather than any particular failings on the part of the new president….

The new American president faces an economic disaster at home, a stalemated war in Afghanistan, unpredictable adversaries in places such as North Korea, and largely unhelpful allies in Europe. This week Mr Obama cemented the impression that he is an unusually gifted and intelligent politician. But that does not mean he will succeed. It could just be that he is the right man at the wrong time.

If there’s any good news, it’s that, after reading Arms Control Wonk, the North Koreans look more and more like an irritant rather than a threat.  

Question to readers:  will Obama’s trip pay any long-term policy dividends?   

Daniel W. Drezner is a professor of international politics at the Fletcher School of Law and Diplomacy at Tufts University and co-host of the Space the Nation podcast. Twitter: @dandrezner

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