At the last press conference held at the ministry, US Secretary of State Antony Blinken made statements regarding the ceasefire process in Gaza and the course of the Russia-Ukraine War, which are the main topics of the international agenda.
Blinken, who was protested by two American journalists while talking about Gaza, said that they carried out intense diplomacy with Qatar and Egypt for months for a ceasefire in Gaza and that they worked hard to reach an agreement between the parties in this process.
Evaluating whether the ceasefire in Gaza will begin to be implemented on Sunday, Blinken said, “I have full confidence that the ceasefire will begin to be implemented on Sunday, I expect it. It is not a surprise that some problems arise in such a complex and sensitive negotiation process. We are currently quickly resolving these problems.” he said.
Stating that he believes that some problems will not hinder the implementation of the ceasefire, Blinken stated that the ceasefire in Gaza will begin to be implemented on Sunday as planned.
Blinken said that the Donald Trump administration, which will take office on January 20, also presented the draft to US President Joe Biden and stood behind the accepted agreement, and stated that Trump’s team should also accept that they contributed to this process.
REFERENCE TO PRESIDENT ERDOĞAN’S INITIATIVES
The US minister said that they had many meetings with the actors in the region regarding Hamas’s return to the negotiation table and that they asked for the help of President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan in this context.
“We also went to other actors, like President Erdogan, and asked him to use his weight and influence to bring Hamas back to the table and try to finalize an agreement. And he did that,” Blinken said. he said.
USA’S WEAPON ASSISTANCE TO ISRAEL
On the other hand, Blinken answered questions about whether Israel carried out attacks against international law in Gaza using US weapons and whether the Biden administration’s decision on this issue was correct.
Blinken said that they cannot make a clear assessment that Israel used US weapons in violation of international law in Gaza, that these weapons may have been used in some cases, but they are not at a point to stop the arms shipment to Israel.
“TRUMP HAS AN OPPORTUNITY”
Blinken touched upon the Russia-Ukraine War as well as Middle East issues in most of his speech, and emphasized that they stood against the invasion of this country by Russia with their military and political support to Ukraine.
Blinken said, “We brought together some 50 countries to help Ukraine defend itself against (Russian President Vladimir) Putin’s war of aggression. Ukraine repelled Russia’s invasion and regained half of its initially captured territory. To Russia “We have also introduced the most comprehensive sanctions and export controls ever implemented.” he said.
Stating that they have provided strong support to Ukraine so far, Blinken argued that the new administration should continue to support Kiev.
Blinken stated that they are aware of Trump’s desire to end the Ukraine war and made the following assessment:
“The new administration will be in a position to help negotiate a good deal, if the Ukrainians want and choose to do so. President Trump talks about making strong, good deals, and I think there’s an opportunity. If there’s going to be a ceasefire, making sure it’s permanent and maintained.” “It is important that in a possible ceasefire, the necessary deterrence should be effectively included to prevent Russia from attacking again.” (AA)