U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken and Turkish Foreign Minister Hakan Fidan will hold in-depth talks about the ongoing war between Israel and Hamas, with the latter to put pressure on his American counterpart for an immediate ceasefire.
Blinken included Türkiye in his Middle East itinerary following his visit to Israel and Jordan, where he had meetings with the leaders of these countries as well as the foreign ministers of the regional countries. The U.S. top diplomat met with Palestinian leader Mahmoud Abbas on late Nov. 5 before arriving in Ankara.
The U.S. diplomat is not expected to meet President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan, who is in Rize for a visit.
A written statement from the Turkish Foreign Ministry on late Nov. 4 stressed that discussions between the two ministers will include the situation in Gaza, regional issues and bilateral relations.
Türkiye has been strongly condemning Israel’s attacks against Gaza that have killed almost 10,000 Palestinians, with most of them being children and women. It has also been urging the U.S. and other world powers to press on Israel for a ceasefire and start talks for a comprehensive and lasting solution to pave the way for a two-state solution.
In his messages in the region, Blinken rejected the calls for a ceasefire but at the same time urged Israel for a pause in its offensive to deliver humanitarian assistance into the enclave. He also stressed that the U.S. is in favor of the two-state solution with an independent Palestine.
Ankara has also proposed a new mechanism of guarantors who would assure the fulfillment of a peace agreement between Israel and Palestine after the end of the armed conflict. It said it could be one of the guarantors of Palestine.
The two ministers are also expected to review the situation in Syria after a U.S. warplane downed a Turkish drone in northern Syria during an anti-terror operation. Erdoğan had strongly slammed the U.S. for the attack, underlining that this was inconsistent with the spirit of the NATO alliance.
Blinken will also raise Sweden’s bid to join the alliance in the Turkish capital Ankara. Erdoğan has already submitted Sweden’s accession protocol to the parliament for its ratification, but it is not yet sure when the vote will take place.