SINGAPORE: The Muslim struggle to come to terms both with itself and the rest of the international community will affect world affairs for decades, a US expert warned in a report published on Wednesday.

Richard Solomon, president of the Washington-based United States Institute of Peace, said non-Muslims could only be marginal players in the struggle.

“Our challenge is to be supportive of the forces of moderation and tolerance in that world, and to work with friendly countries to isolate and neutralize those who seek a violent clash of civilizations,” Solomon told the Regional Outlook Forum 2003 on Tuesday.

The former Assistant Secretary of State for East Asian and Pacific affairs said in the report published in The Straits Times the most difficult challenge was likely to lie in managing relations with the world of Islam.

In debates such as modernization versus tradition, he said the non-Muslim world had the least to contribute, but such issues are “where our collective future may be most affected.”—dpa