On Thursday, November 6, the official news agency Irna published a text in which Iranian president Mahmoud Ahmadinejad congratulates Barack Obama for his success in the election, and calls upon the new U.S. head of state for "fundamental and fair" changes in foreign policy, characterized by "noninterference" in the domestic affairs of other countries.
It is the first message of congratulations that an Iranian leader has sent to a newly elected American president since 1979, the year of the Khomeini revolution, with the ascent to power of the ayatollahs. For almost 30 years, the two countries have not had official diplomatic relations, and George W. Bush has repeatedly included Iran on the list of countries that are part of the so-called "axis of evil."
"Convert to Islam" is the message that the leaders of Al Qaeda have issued "to the new leaders of the White House and their allies among Christian countries." The text is signed by Abu Omar al Baghdad, an association of terrorist groups guided by the Iraqi branch of Al Qaeda.
Partial openness to the new American president is also coming from North Korea, which says it is ready to "sign agreements" with the new U.S. administration. "We will have dialogue if (the US) seeks dialogue." A newspaper connected to the Pyongyang regime, printed in Japan, also emphasizes the "the new phase" into which the Korean Peninsula has entered, and invites the new Obama administration "to put behind it the errors of the governments that preceded it."
