Congratulations President Obama

We would like to express our congratulations and best wishes to Barack Obama after being sworn in as the 44th President of the United States of America on Tuesday.

His inauguration was a historic event which, like the election before it sends a strong message to the rest of the world, showing the strength of American democracy and reinforces the message to minorities in this country that the American Dream is still alive and kicking.

His transition now over, President Obama and his Administration will move forward, together the Legislative and Judicial branches of the government, with governing the country.

He has already made clear his priority is restoring confidence in and the vitality of the American (and thus the global) economy.

Again, we wish him well in these necessary efforts. His statements to date show promise; he has pulled back from his campaign promises to repeal the former President's tax reforms and, while we have problems with the idea of further massive subsidies for American business, we are reasonably confident that his economic team will proceed with care.

We are also pleased with his national security choices so far.

Helped by the success of the Surge, he will continue to draw down American troop levels in Iraq and seems determined to continue the fight against Islamic extremism in Afghanistan.

While there are specific policies that we are concerned about, and which will no doubt feature on these pages over the next few years, for the moment, we wish him well, admire his grace and congratulate him on his amazing success.