- 10 Oct 09, 14:40#161676
Le coeur a ses raisons que la raison ne connaît point. 
Some pundits said that Obama changed the way nations interact with each other, especially how America behaves on the world stage, i.e., multilateral dialogues vs. unilateral ultimatums, etc., which obviously increases chances for peace. In the past 30 years or so, Democratic presidents always had to show that they are tough or the American people wouldn't approve of them. Obama tries a different way internationally and is taking a big risk in doing so. A little encouragement could help, but the prize could also translate into pressure - the announcement came on the very day when Obama was in high-level discussions to come to a decision about troops in Afghanistan.

