Excitement about Obama spreads around the world

By Jill Lawless
ASSOCIATED PRESS

9:06 a.m. June 4, 2008

LONDON – Excitement about Barack Obama emerged as a global phenomenon Wednesday as commentators and citizens around the world welcomed the news that he had sealed the Democratic presidential nomination.
The excitement was less about Obama's foreign policies – which remain vague on many fronts – than a sense that the candidacy of a black American with relatives in Africa and childhood friends in Asia marks a historic moment.

Michael Cox, a professor of international relations at the London School of Economics, said Obama's win “has sent out a lot of positive signals around the world.â€