Antony Blinken’s latest visit comes as the Israeli military has stepped up its campaign against the Palestinian enclave as well as the Iran-aligned Hezbollah militia in Lebanon. file | Photo Credit: AP
U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken He arrived in Israel on Tuesday (Oct 22, 2024), the first stop of a broader Middle East tour aimed at reviving Gaza ceasefire talks and discussing the enclave’s future following the death of Hamas leader Yahya Sinwar, but the looming US election. There was no success before. Looks illusive.
The top US diplomat’s latest visit – his eleventh to the region since Palestinian Hamas militants attacked southern Israel on October 7, sparking the Gaza war – comes as Israeli forces clash with the Palestinian territory. -It has also intensified its campaign against Iran-aligned Hezbollah in Lebanon. Militia.
Mr Blinken’s planned week-long visit, which will include stops in Jordan and Doha on Wednesday (October 23, 2024), also comes as the region prepares for Israel in response to Iran’s October 1 ballistic missile attack on Israel. doing. Retaliation could disrupt the oil market and risk sparking a full-scale war between the archenemies.
On Gaza, Mr. Blinken will focus discussions on how to end the war, plans for the enclave after the fighting ends and how to improve humanitarian aid, a senior State Department official said on condition of anonymity. Said.
Last week Mr. Blinken and US Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin Wrote a letter to Israeli officials demanding concrete steps to deal with the deteriorating situation in Gaza or face possible sanctions on US military aid.
The official said that in his meetings with Israel and Arab countries, Mr Blinken would discuss “day after tomorrow” issues, particularly security, governance and reconstruction. Having detailed plans for each of these is seen as a prerequisite for achieving any lasting resolution to the conflict.
The secretary of state will also discuss with Israel and other countries how to secure a diplomatic resolution to the conflict with Hezbollah, and continue Washington’s dialogue with Israel about their expected response to an Iranian missile attack, the official said.
Breakthrough ‘hard to imagine’
Experts say deep differences between Hamas and Israel remain and they are unlikely to make significant concessions before the November 5 US presidential election, which could reverse US policy.
Aaron David Miller, a senior fellow at the Carnegie Endowment for International Peace, said “it is very hard to imagine” that Mr. Blinken will make any breakthroughs this week, noting that neither Hamas nor Benjamin Netanyahu has committed to ending the war. Someone is in a hurry.
“Seizing the moment in this case is a fundamentally misleading concept because I’m not sure there is a moment,” Mr Miller said.
Mr Biden’s administration saw the killing of Sinwar by Israeli forces last week as a possible start that would eventually pave the way for ending the Gaza war. Still, Mr. Netanyahu, the Israeli prime minister, says the fight will continue.
Israel is stepping up military operations to push Hezbollah away from its northern border, while also making inroads into Gaza’s densely populated Jabaliya refugee camp, which Palestinians and UN agencies fear could cut northern Gaza off from the rest of the region. There may be an attempt to close it.
Analysts say Mr Netanyahu may prefer to wait until the end of US President Joe Biden’s term, which ends in January, and take his chances with the next president, whether Democratic nominee Kamala Harris or his Republican opponent Donald Trump. Mr Netanyahu spoke to Mr Trump by phone on Saturday (October 19, 2024) about the conflict, the offices of both Mr Trump and Mr Netanyahu said.
The Gaza ceasefire proposal that the US and mediators Egypt and Qatar have worked on for months is no longer possible, Mr Miller said, and the lack of command and control within Hamas also complicates the negotiation process.
“The proposal that would be most realistic would be for Blinken to come and say ‘We will do everything for everyone.’ There will be many questions in that formulation that need to be answered.
Speaking to reporters on Monday (October 21, 2024), State Department deputy spokesperson Vedanta Patel stressed that US officials feel there is “an opportunity to move the ball forward” on the ceasefire.
“I’m not going to speculate on any immediate end product or outcome (from the visit), but we think it’s important to engage not only with the Israelis, but also with other partners in the region,” he said.
published – October 22, 2024 08:39 am IST