Some in Arab World Wary of Clinton

Obama's decision to turn to Clinton as his point person on foreign policy is somewhat ironic, given the intensive effort of some of his aides during the campaign to disparage her foreign policy experience. But the reality is that Clinton has immersed herself deeply in foreign affairs since the collapse of the health-care plan she spearheaded in the first two years of her husband's administration.

As first lady, Clinton acquainted herself with the elements of American "soft power," making dozens of trips around the world to promote women's rights and the work of nongovernmental organizations, and to endorse micro-credit as a way of stimulating development in the Third World. Her interest in these issues continues to this day: She recently wrote a letter to the U.N. secretary general calling for greater protections for women and girls after a 13-year-old rape victim was stoned to death in Somalia.

During her recent time in the Senate, Clinton focused more on "hard power" as a member of the Armed Services Committee, gaining knowledge of Iraq, Afghanistan and NATO -- all subjects likely to occupy her attention as secretary of state. She acquired a reputation as someone sympathetic to the needs and concerns of the military while initially supporting President Bush in Afghanistan and Iraq.

Although Clinton later came to criticize the conduct of the Iraq war and called for a U.S. withdrawal, her vote in favor of a bill authorizing Bush to go to war became a flash point in her battle with Obama for the Democratic nomination. Obama was a much earlier opponent of the war and used the issue to sow doubts about Clinton's judgment.

Clinton also clashed with Obama over Iran, ridiculing his stated willingness to sit down with Iran's leaders without preconditions. She sought to paint Obama as naive and unprepared for the commander-in-chief job, while Obama's team portrayed his rival as reckless, pointing to her support for a measure calling the Iranian Revolutionary Guard a terrorist organization.

Many people close to Clinton say that the actual differences between the two are minimal, and that as secretary she would have little problem carrying out his policies. Both have made clear they would like to redeploy forces from Iraq and focus more intensively on the struggle in Afghanistan. Like Obama, Clinton has indicated she would like to see stepped-up diplomacy and engagement with Iran, though not necessarily at the highest levels, to determine whether a deal can be struck to eliminate Tehran's nuclear enrichment program.

"Their arguments were about tactics, not about objectives," said Martin Indyk, a former ambassador to Israel who has consulted with Clinton about the Middle East but emphasized that he was not speaking for her. "Obama will probably launch an initiative toward the Iranians, and it will be very important for his secretary of state to be on board, because she would have to implement that. I think she would be comfortable with that."

Amjad Atallah, who formerly served as a legal adviser for the Palestinian negotiating team in peace talks with the Israelis, said the prospective Clinton nomination is being watched warily in the Arab world, given her unstinting support for Israel in recent years and hawkish comments on Iran. Some worry that her selection is a possible indicator that Obama may not be as aggressive as Palestinians hope in pushing for a peace deal.

"Nobody has a negative opinion of Senator Clinton, except maybe that her opinions are closer to the neoconservatives than they might wish," Atallah said.

Others close to Obama and Clinton say such fears are misplaced. Obama, they say, is extremely interested in an early push on the Middle East, while Clinton has made clear that she sees much more aggressive U.S. engagement as critical to success in the region. "Whether or not the United States makes progress in helping broker a final agreement, consistent U.S. involvement can lower the level of violence and restore our credibility in the region," she wrote in Foreign Affairs last year.

Clinton would enter the world of diplomacy benefiting from the high esteem for her husband around the world, where many associate Bill Clinton's presidency with aggressive diplomacy in the Middle East and elsewhere. In an interview with a small group of journalists Friday, Javier Solana, the top diplomat for the European Union, said he hoped that Obama would "move very fast" to engage in the Middle East peace process and made clear that he thought Clinton would be an enthusiastic proponent of such an approach.

"The name 'Clinton,' " Solana said, "is well taken, well appreciated."

Staff researcher Julie Tate contributed to this report.