The United States Secretary of the State will making his fourth trip to to the Middle East since the terrorist attacks of October 7th in Israel, as well as to make a stop at some European countries.
This was disclosed by the State Department Spokesman, Mathew Miller at Press Briefing on Thursday, stating that over the course of the next week, the Secretary will visit Türkiye, Greece, Jordan, Qatar, United Arab Emirates, Saudi Arabia, Israel, West Bank, and Egypt for meetings with foreign counterparts and others.
He said during this trip, the Secretary will focus on a number of critical issues. “First, to discuss immediate measures to increase substantially humanitarian assistance to Gaza as United States played a critical role in unlocking humanitarian assistance for the Palestinian people, but conditions remain extremely difficult”.
Adding that the Secretary will stress the imperative of expanding and sustaining safe access for humanitarian organizations to deliver food, water, medicine, as well as for commercial goods to enter all areas of Gaza.
According to him, “Second, he will discuss with the Government of Israel its ongoing military campaign against Hamas to ensure October 7th cannot be repeated, including plans to transition to the next phase of operations.
“And how to – the steps Israel can take to better protect civilians, and how to enable Palestinians to return to their homes and neighborhoods as fighting curtails. He will also stress to the Government of Israel the need to do more to lower tensions in the West Bank”.
The Spokesman pressed further that the Secretary will also discuss ongoing efforts to bring home remaining hostages, including the American citizens who are still unaccounted for.
“The Secretary has no higher priority than the safety and security of American citizens, and he will not rest as long as Americans – along with Israelis and citizens of many other countries – continue to be held captive”.
Furthermore, Miller said Blinken will focus on, as he has consistently since October 7th, preventing the conflict from expanding. He will discuss specific steps parties can take, including how they can use their influence with others in the region, to avoid escalation.
He said, “It is in no one’s interest – not Israel’s, not the region’s, not the world’s – for this conflict to spread beyond Gaza. As part of those discussions, he will raise the need to take steps to deter the Houthis’ attacks on commercial shipping in the Red Sea”.
The Spokesman made it known that the Secretary will emphasize on responsibility of all parties to help chart a path forward for Gaza that achieves lasting security for both Israelis and Palestinians.
“As well as a more peaceful, integrated region – building on the principles he laid out in Tokyo on November 8th, and including a sustained mechanism for reconstruction and Palestinian-led governance of a unified West Bank and Gaza”.
He noted that the Secretary will look forward to discussing with his Turkish counterparts our many areas of bilateral and regional cooperation, including the final steps to complete Türkiye’s ratification of Sweden’s accession to NATO.
“And to conversations with the Government of Greece about their support for Ukraine and safeguarding regional maritime security. We don’t expect every conversation on this trip to be easy.
“There are obviously tough issues facing the region and difficult choices ahead. But the Secretary believes it is the responsibility of United States of America to lead diplomatic efforts to tackle those challenges head on, and he is prepared to do that in the days to come”, the Spokesman added.
