US, regional leaders to coordinate on Gaza recovery, stability: Blinken
- The US secretary of state said Arab countries are interested in normalising relations with Israel but a clear path towards Palestinian state is needed
- Blinken is asking states to try to reduce tensions that have already sparked violence in the Israeli-occupied West Bank, Lebanon, Syria and Iraq
US Secretary of State Antony Blinken said on Monday after meeting the leaders of Saudi Arabia and Abu Dhabi that countries in the region were interested in pursuing normalisation of relations with Israel but that it will require a clear path toward a Palestinian state.
“There’s a clear interest in the region in pursuing that but it will require that the conflict end in Gaza and it will also clearly require that there be a practical pathway to a Palestinian state,” Blinken said.
“But the interest is there, it’s real, and it could be transformative.
Those included that the West Bank and Gaza should be united under Palestinian-led governance and that the region needs to work toward normalising ties, not division or conflict.
“For that to happen, we need to see the establishment of an independent Palestinian state,” Blinken said.