US Secretary of State Antony Blinken met with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu in Jerusalem Tuesday morning, as Blinken began his three-day visit to the Middle East.
In a joint press statement with Blinken, Netanyahu thanked President Joe Biden and Blinken for “firmly supporting Israel’s right of self-defense.”
“I have to say that Secretary Blinken, in a previous capacity, in 2014 when we had another round of engagement against Hamas aggression, supported us by having Iron Dome replacements of a quarter of a billion dollars, which you personally shepherded through the system very quickly. And we remember it and we are very grateful.”
“Now you’re doing that again, giving replenishments of our Iron Dome interceptors, which saved civilian lives on both sides.”
“We, too, will give meaning to our self-defense if Hamas breaks the calm and attacks Israel. Our response will be very powerful.”
In their closed-door meeting prior to the press conference, the Prime Minister and Secretary of State discussed the Iranian threat, Netanyahu said, expressing hope that the US “will not go back to the old JCPOA,” referring to the 2015 Iran nuclear deal, “because we believe that that deal paves the way for Iran to have an arsenal of nuclear weapons with international legitimacy.”
“We also reiterated that no matter what happens, Israel will always reserve the right to defend itself from a regime committed to our destruction, committed to getting the weapons of mass destruction to that end.”
Turning to the Abraham Accords, Netanyahu called to expand the number of Arab and Muslim countries with normalized ties to Israel, and to “deepen” the existing peace treaties signed last year.
“We discussed, also, how to improve the lives and conditions of the Palestinians, the humanitarian conditions in Gaza, including the question of our return of our MIAs and two civilians who are there, as well as building economic growth for Judea and Samaria – the West Bank – with international cooperation and participation.”
“As for a formal peace with the Palestinians, I think President Biden was absolutely correct when he said that ‘You’re not going to get peace until Israel is recognized as an independent Jewish state.’ I couldn’t agree more.”
Following Netanyahu’s comments, Blinken laid out the goals for his trip to the Middle East, listing the Biden administration’s desire both to show its commitment to Israel’s security and to “rebuild our relationship” with the Palestinian Authority.
“President Biden asked me to come here today really for four reasons.”
“First, to demonstrate America’s commitment to Israel’s security; to start to work towards greater stability and reduce tensions in the West Bank and Jerusalem; to support urgent humanitarian assistance for Gaza to benefit the Palestinian people; and to continue to rebuild our relationship with the Palestinian people and the Palestinian Authority.”
“Intense behind-the-scenes diplomacy by President Biden, working very closely with the Prime Minister, led to the ceasefire. Now we must build on it. That starts with the recognition that losses on both sides were profound. Causalities are often reduced to numbers, but every number is an individual human being – a son, a daughter, a father, a mother, a grandparent, a best friend. As the Talmud teaches, to lose a life is to lose the whole world, whether that life is Palestinian or Israeli.”
“The United States fully supports Israel’s right to defend itself against attacks such as the thousands of rockets fired by Hamas indiscriminately against civilians.”
Blinken also alluded to the wave of Arab riots and attacks on Jews inside of Israel earlier this month, saying he discussed with Netanyahu the “intercommunal violence which erupted in Israel during the conflict.”
“Healing these wounds will take leadership at every level of society, from elected officials to community leaders to neighbors.”
“In our own country, the United States, we witnessed a shocking eruption of anti-Semitic attacks. As President Biden said yesterday, they are despicable and they must stop.”
Blinken landed in Israel at just before 8:00 a.m. Tuesday, meeting with Israeli Foreign Minister Gabi Ashkenazi (Blue and White) on the tarmac of Ben Gurion International Airport.
שר החוץ האמריקני אנתוני בלינקן הגיע הבוקר (שלישי) לביקור בישראל כחלק ממסע שבלינקן עורך במדינות האזור.
בלינקן ייפגש הבוקר עם ראש הממשלה בנימין נתניהו ובשעות הצהריים תיערך לו פגישה עם שר הביטחון בני גנץ.
בלינקן גם יבקר ברשות הפלסטינית וייפגש עם אבו מאזן, לאחר תקופה ארוכה שבה החרימו הפלסטינים את האמריקנים בשל מדיניותו של הנשיא הקודם דונלד טראמפ.
