Critics ready to pounce on slips as Obama prepares for world tour

As Barack Obama jets into Iraq today and then travels on to Israel, Afghanistan and Europe, his every utterance will be closely monitored in Chicago, home of his administration in waiting.

A single misstep, an off-the-cuff foreign policy initiative or even a mispronounced name will be pounced on by his Republican rival, John McCain, as evidence that he is a naïf in the one area over which a president has most say – US foreign policy.

"I believe that either today or tomorrow – and I'm not privy to his schedule – Senator Obama will be landing in Iraq with some other senators," Mr McCain said yesterday, piercing the veil of security surrounding his rival's itinerary.

There are hazards aplenty as the Democratic candidate travels into the conflict zones of Iraq, Afghanistan and the West Bank, before he arrives in western Europe during the second half of the week.

He is the first black candidate with a shot at the presidency, and is likely to be met by an adoring public, but there is nevertheless anxiety in the chancelleries of Europe.

Before he enters Downing Street to greet Gordon Brown or sits down with David Cameron, Mr Obama will be as carefully briefed as though he were a sitting president. Britain needs to know just what Mr Obama has in mind when it comes to direct talks with the Iranian leadership, or how abruptly he would withdraw US forces from Iraq.

He will be relying on a team of 300 foreign policy advisers. Most were senior players in Bill Clinton's second administration. By 8am each day these advisers in Chicago will send him two emails: a news briefing on world developments and a series of suggested answers for questions that are likely to come his way.

The core team is led by Anthony Lake (Mr Clinton's national security adviser from 1993 to 1997) and Susan Rice, the assistant secretary of state for Africa under Mr Clinton. Ms Rice was the top national security adviser in John Kerry's failed attempt to become president in 2004. Mr Obama has already promised a new era of inclusive diplomacy. But during this trip he will be demanding that European leaders respond to his overtures by committing more of their own soldiers to Afghanistan and elsewhere.

"The stakes are very high for Obama," said Lee Hamilton, of the Woodrow Wilson International Centre. "Foreign policy is one area where they [voters] have their doubts about him".

Mr Obama is due to deliver a major foreign policy speech in Berlin, although he has decided against using the Brandenburg Gate as a backdrop, after an argument with Angela Merkel's government.

* President Bush has agreed to set a "general time horizon" for deeper US troop cuts in Iraq, the White House said yesterday, a dramatic shift from his once-ironclad unwillingness to talk about any kind of deadlines or timetables.

The announcement put Bush in the position of offering to talk with Iraqi leaders about a politically charged issue that he adamantly has refused to discuss with the Democratic-led Congress at home. It also could complicate the presidential campaign arguments of Republican John McCain and Democrat Barack Obama who have staked out starkly opposite stands about the unpopular war.

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