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America is superpower for looking beyond its interests - Obama at UNGA (VIDEO) America is superpower for looking beyond its interests - Obama at UNGA (VIDEO)
(35 minutes later)
In his final address to the UN General Assembly, President Barack Obama touted the US for observing the interest of other countries, criticized those who do not, called for better trade agreements like TPP and mentioned fight against ISIS in passing. In his final address to the UN General Assembly, President Barack Obama praised the US for observing the interest of other countries, criticized those who do not, called for better trade agreements like TPP, and mentioned fight against ISIS in passing.
Obama began the speech by listing the achievements of his administration over the past eight years.
“The world is by many measures less violent and more prosperous than ever before," he said, noting that even so, "our societies are filled with unease and strife.”
Most of Obama's speech focused on  the signs of prosperity over the last 10 years. “The integration of our global economy has made life better for billions,” he said, noting that the share of world population living in extreme poverty went from 40 percent to 10 percent.
“The world is by many measures less violent and more prosperous than ever before," he said, noting that  "our societies are filled with unease and strife.” Obama's last UNGA speech as a president was more of a sales pitch for globalization and international trade agreements. He mentioned the fight against Islamic State (IS, formerly ISIS/ISIL) and extremism only in passing.
“The integration of our global economy has made life better for billions,” he said  adding that extreme poverty went from 40% to 10%.
Although he mentioned ISIS and fighting extremists in passing, Obama's last UNGA speech  as a president was more of a sales pitch for globalization and international trade agreements.
He called on the world not to reject global integration, but  to “work together to see the benefits of integration are more broadly shared.”He called on the world not to reject global integration, but  to “work together to see the benefits of integration are more broadly shared.”
 He did noted that the globalization  and rapid progress of technology have diminished ability of workers to earn a decent wage with many good paying jobs disappearing.  While nothing that globalization and rapid progress of technology have diminished ability of workers to earn a decent wage, with many good paying jobs disappearing, Obama pleaded with the world leaders to stay the course.
 He said that the defeat of communism and  colonialism gave people choice and increased the number of  democracies. He gave examples of North Korea and South Korea as  showing that command economy doesn't work. He didn't mention years of sanctions by US and other countries on North Korea. “The existing path toward global integration requires a course correction,” he said.
Putting colonialism and communism in the same basked, Obama said that their demise gave more people a choice and increased the number of democracies. He compared the "wasteland" of North Korea to South Korea, as proof that command economy doesn't work, but did not mention years of US and UN sanctions against North Korea.
Obama called on advanced economies to do more to close the gap between rich and poor nations.Obama called on advanced economies to do more to close the gap between rich and poor nations.
“I do not think America can or should impose our model on other countries,” he said, noting, however that if there is a conflict between liberalism and authoritarianism “I am not neutral in that conflict. I believe in a liberal political order.” “I do not think America can or should impose our model on other countries,” Obama said, but added that there was an ongoing conflict between liberalism and authoritarianism, in which he was not neutral.“I believe in a liberal political order,” he said.
He criticized the US for having too much money in politics and too tough voting laws, and  Brussels detaching from the rest of Europe. Countries preaching democracy abroad should “strive harder to set a better example at home,”  Obama said, criticizing the US for having too much money in politics and restrictive voting laws, while blasting the EU bureaucracy in Brussels for being too detached and unaccountable to the people it ruled.
He said that countries preaching democracy abroad should “strive harder to set a better example at home.”  The criticism was tempered by the assertion that the US has been "a force for good," the rare superpower in history able "to look beyond its narrow self-interest" and respect the interests of others by binding itself to international law.
Obama called America a rare superpower in history for being able "to look beyond its narrow self-interest."“I believe we have been a force for good,” he said, denouncing the notion that “At times, both America’s adversaries and some of our allies believe that all problems were caused by Washington or could be solved by Washington. And perhaps some in Washington have thought that as well.” Obama criticized Russia and China for what he said was strong-arming neighbors and militarizing some "rocks and shoals" – referring to the South China Sea – while the US believed in laws and peaceful resolution of disputes.
“At times, both America’s adversaries and some of our allies believe that all problems are caused by Washington or could be solved by Washington. And perhaps some in Washington have thought that as well,” Obama said, to laughter from the Assembly.
On the subject of battling IS and resolving the conflicts in the Middle East, Obama said the world “must insist that nations end proxy wars that fuel disorder,” but did not elaborate further. He called on countries "blessed with wealth and benefits of geography" to do more to help refugees find a new home.
Time and again, though, Obama kept coming back to the belief that liberal globalism would make the world better.
"We must reject any form of fundamentalism, or racism, or a belief in ethnic superiority that makes our traditional identities irreconcilable with modernity,” the outgoing US president argued. "The world is too small, we are too packed together, for us to be able to resort to those old ways of thinking.”