US Secretary of State Anthony Blinken arrives in Tel Aviv this morning, four days after an Egypt-brokered truce halted fighting between Israel and Hamas.
Blinken, who said earlier his trip would aim to support “efforts to solidify a ceasefire,” is set to meet Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and Palestinian Authority President Mahmoud Abbas.
He will then travel on to neighboring Egypt and Jordan.
US President Joe Biden said Sunday Blinken would meet “with Israeli leaders about our ironclad commitment to Israel’s security,” as well as seek to rebuild ties with the Palestinians.
Blinken on Sunday reaffirmed US support for a two-state solution as the only way to provide hope to Israelis and Palestinians that they can live “with equal measures of security, of peace and dignity.”
His remarks about “equal measures” for Israelis and Palestinians seemed to shift the tone from Donald Trump’s administration, which cut aid to the Palestinian Authority and unveiled a Middle East peace plan with strong Israeli backing but no support from Palestinians.
Content retrieved from: https://www.timesofisrael.com/liveblog_entry/top-us-diplomat-lands-in-israel-to-solidify-ceasefire/.