President Barack Obama campaigned on the promise to restore goodwill after years of his predecessor’s cowboy diplomacy. Former President Bush arguably placed extreme divisions between America and its European allies—Germany and France in particular—with the decision to invade Iraq.

America’s reputation abroad has suffered for numerous blunders including Iraq, a failure to achieve peace in the Middle East and an agreement on global climate change. Since this year’s election, though, Obama has made many inroads to restore America’s reputation.

Recently, the Obama administration, flanked by Defense Secretary Robert Gates, announced its decision to discontinue a missile defense shield in both the Czech Republic and Poland. The original intent of the shield was to counter any threat from “rogue nation-states such as Iran.”

However, Russia accused the United States of attempting to thwart Russian capabilities, and analysts say this tit-for-tat diplomacy has prevented further actions against Iran.

 Last week’s shift from long-range to immediate-range systems effectively breaks the deadlock and should be praised. America has shown goodwill, and Russia should return the favor by signing onto strict sanctions against the rogue Islamic state.

During the campaign, Obama stated the central front of the war on terror is Afghanistan. In recent months, U.S. casualties have become the deadliest since October 2001, and Afghanistan is currently at a critical point, much like Iraq was in the summer of 2006.

Obama seems unconvinced that more troops will solve Afghanistan’s woes, yet the Pentagon has requested an additional 40,000 troops be deployed. Obama faces a grim reality: double-down on a politically unpopular war or begin a slow but steady retreat with dire consequences.

Obama should take the advice of his own generals. The counter-insurgency strategy, proven in Iraq and needed to win in Afghanistan, deserves the influx of troops. Afghanistan remains the central front of the war on terror, and to withdraw will only embolden our enemies abroad and shock our armed forces into the defeatist mentality of Vietnam.

Obama has renewed efforts to bring about peace in the Middle East. Holding an open hand towards both a more skeptical Israeli government and defunct Palestinian leadership is no easy task. While the main point of the conflict—a two-state solution—has been resolved, details such as water rights, access to Jerusalem and others remain unmanageable to the administration in the short-term.

Presently, Obama’s hands are tied by the growing concern over Iran’s nuclear ambitions. Obama’s charm and willingness to support global demands such as climate change should deliver a stronger, united response from the global community in demanding Iran to cease its nuclear program.

After nine months, Obama has extended and opened the hands of American goodwill, a desire to return to global leadership and mutual respect with its allies. This departure from the eight years of the Bush Administration is refreshing, but a concern. It will soon be determined if merely a different salesman can persuade the world of the same solutions to its laundry-list of problems.