WASHINGTON, 5 March 2005 — President Bush says he is not taking credit for the freedom movement taking place in the Middle East. Nor is he giving the credit to the US. President Bush says he credits God, not his administration or America, for the spread of freedom there.

The president said this as part of his weeklong campaign for Syria to withdraw it troops from Lebanon, saying his administration wants an immediate withdrawal.

But his most forceful words came during a speech at Anne Arundel Community College in Maryland where — encouraged by the fall of Lebanon’s pro-Syria government and other signs of democratization throughout the Middle East — Bush made clear he is seeking to keep up the pressure for change in the region.

“The world is speaking with one voice when it comes to making sure that democracy has a chance to flourish in Lebanon and throughout the greater Middle East,” he said. “Freedom is on the march. It’s a profound period of time.”

Then he brought God into the picture: “So I look forward to continuing to work with friends and allies to advance freedom — not America’s freedom, but universal freedom, freedom granted by a Higher Being,” he said.

“I admire his faith, and the fact that he didn’t give himself credit shows his humility which I find rather endearing,” said Shireen Hunter, director of the Washington-based Center for Strategic and International Studies Islam Program.

“On the other hand — although there well may a divine plan for the world — one needs to deal with realities we see. What is happening in the Arab world is a continuation of a long process of evolution in that part of the world.

“The US policy of emphasizing democratic change has given heart to forces of democracy there. But we shouldn’t start celebrating and thinking that democracy has arrived and everything is okay. But these are encouraging times,” said Hunter.

Hunter said recent polls show that Muslims are eager for freedom and democracy. “Muslims want a system of government where their voices will be heard, where they can take part in decision-making policies and have a government that is accountable to the people.”

Asked if she thought Muslims might be offended by Bush’s reference to God helping out in the region, Hunter said: “No, not at all. Muslims like Americans, despite the current anti-American feeling, they basically have a positive perception of US society, because they see American people are more believers, believing in God. Whereas they perceive Europeans as having abandoned God, so I think this would be more a positive thing thane a negative.”

Theodore Kattouf, who was US ambassador to Syria until he retired in 2003, also endorsed the US strategy on Syria, but cautioned restraint.

“The administration has played its hand very well,” Kattouf said at the Washington Institute for Near East Policy. But, he said, if the administration “goes too far, things could go wrong.”

“There could be a coup from within, not a regime change,” Kattouf said of the impact of US pressure on Syrian President Bashar Assad and his government.