U.S. Secretary for State Antony Blinken will visit Saudi Arabia on Monday and Tuesday to meet with regional partners and discuss efforts to achieve a ceasefire in Gaza and the release of Israeli hostages, the State Department said on Saturday.
U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken gestures, as he and his wife Evan Ryan board a plane at the U.S. Naval Support Activity base, after the G7 foreign ministers summit on Capri island, in Naples, Italy, April 19, 2024. Reuters/Ciro De Luca
U.S. Secretary for State Antony Blinken will visit Saudi Arabia on Monday and Tuesday to meet with regional partners and discuss efforts to achieve a ceasefire in Gaza and the release of Israeli hostages, the State Department said on Saturday.
"He will discuss the recent increase in humanitarian assistance being delivered to Gaza and underscore the importance of ensuring that increase is sustained," the State Department said in a statement.
"The Secretary will also emphasize the importance of preventing the conflict from spreading and discuss ongoing efforts to achieve lasting peace and security in the region, including through a pathway to an independent Palestinian state with security guarantees for Israel."
Reporting By Lucia Mutikani and Eric Beech
Saudi Arabia issued alerts on Thursday warning of potential danger in Yanbu, the kingdom's Red Sea oil export hub, as Yemen's Iran-aligned Houthis continue attacks on the kingdom that have opened another front in the US-Israeli war on Iran.
Saudi Arabia and Syria signed a cooperation agreement between the two countries' defense ministries on Wednesday, Saudi state news agency SPA reported, as Yemen's Iran-aligned Houthi group continues its missile and drone attacks on the kingdom.
Turkey's parliament is set on Wednesday to ratify a defence pact with Saudi Arabia and Pakistan that includes a collective defence clause, committing NATO's second-largest army to Riyadh's defence as it faces attacks by Yemen's Iran-backed Houthis.
To make this website run properly and to improve your experience, we use cookies. For more detailed information, please check our Cookie Policy.
Necessary cookies enable core functionality. The website cannot function properly without these cookies, and can only be disabled by changing your browser preferences.