US Secretary of State Anthony Blinken arrived in Israel on Tuesday on the first stop in his first Middle East tour since taking office.
Blinken is also scheduled to visit Palestine, Egypt, and Jordan.
The top US diplomat is expected to meet Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu today at his office in West Jerusalem, according to the State Department.
“Secretary Blinken is undertaking this trip at the request of President Biden. He will first travel to Jerusalem, where he will meet with Israeli President Reuven Rivlin, Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, Foreign Minister Gabi Ashkenazi, and other senior Israeli officials,” Ned Price, the spokesperson for the US State Department, said in a statement.
He pointed that Blinken will later proceed to Ramallah where “he will meet with Palestinian Authority President Mahmoud Abbas, Prime Minister Mohammad Shtayyeh, and other senior officials from the Palestinian Authority,” before moving on to visit Cairo and Amman.
In a follow up statement on his Twitter account, Price said Blinken looks forward to “productive meetings in Jerusalem and Ramallah as we seek to build on the cease-fire, discuss relief efforts, and lay the groundwork for brighter futures for Israelis and Palestinians.”
