US Secretary of State Antony Blinken has spoken to President Mahmoud Abbas about reforming the Palestinian self-rule government, as part of US efforts to rally the region behind post-war plans for Gaza that also include concrete steps toward a Palestinian state.
In their meeting in the West Bank city of Ramallah this Wednesday, Blinken told Abbas that the US supports “tangible steps towards the creation of a Palestinian state," according to State Department spokesman Matthew Miller.
He said the two discussed administrative reform.
During his latest diplomatic tour of the Middle East, Blinken maintains he has secured commitments from multiple countries in the region to assist with rebuilding and governing Gaza after Israel's war against Hamas, and that wider Israeli-Arab normalization is still possible, but only if there is "a pathway to a Palestinian state."
However, the vision outlined by the US top diplomat faces serious obstacles.
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's government is adamantly opposed to the creation of a Palestinian state alongside Israel, led by the autocratic, Western-backed Palestinian leadership.
In the view of many Palestinians, the Palestinian Authority – whose forces were driven from Gaza when Hamas took over in 2007 – lacks legitimacy.
Met with Palestinian Authority President Mahmoud Abbas to discuss ongoing efforts to minimize civilian harm in Gaza, accelerate the delivery of humanitarian aid, end extremist violence, and work towards an independent Palestinian state. pic.twitter.com/c60d5ISLnT
— Secretary Antony Blinken (@SecBlinken) January 10, 2024
Regional support for Palestinian state
Meanwhile, the war in Gaza is still raging with no end in sight, fuelling a humanitarian catastrophe in the tiny coastal enclave.
The fighting has also stoked escalating violence between Israel and Lebanon’s Hezbollah militants that has raised fears of a wider conflict.
On his fourth visit to the region since the war began three months ago, Blinken has met in recent days with the leaders of Saudi Arabia, Jordan, Qatar, the United Arab Emirates and Turkey.
He says they are open to contributing to post-war plans in return for progress on the creation of a Palestinian state.
After meeting with Netanyahu and other senior Israeli officials on Tuesday, Blinken delivered a stark message, saying Israel must stop undercutting the Palestinians' ability to govern themselves with its expansion of settlements, home demolitions and evictions in the West Bank.
Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu is currently holding a private meeting with US Secretary of State Antony Blinken, at the Kirya in Tel Aviv.
— Prime Minister of Israel (@IsraeliPM) January 9, 2024
An expanded meeting with members of the War Cabinet will be held afterward. pic.twitter.com/8v0PPqIRQg
Overhaul of Palestinian Authority
However, he also said the Palestinian Authority “has a responsibility to reform itself, to improve its governance,” and that he would discuss that with 88-year-old Abbas, who has not stood for elections since 2005 and lacks support among his own people.
The Palestinian Authority governs parts of the Israeli-occupied West Bank under interim peace deals reached in the 1990s and cooperates with Israel on security matters, but it has been powerless to prevent the expansion of settlements in occupied territories it needs for a future state.
Also, there have been no serious or substantive peace talks with Israel since Netanyahu returned to office in 2009.
Later Wednesday, Abbas met with King Abdullah II of Jordan and Egyptian President Abdel Fattah el-Sissi in Jordan's Red Sea city of Aqaba.
According to a statement issued by the Jordanian monarchy, the three leaders vowed to continue pressuring Israel to stop the offensive and work together towards the foundation of a Palestinian state.
Since the war began, Israel’s offensive has killed 23,357 Palestinians and wounded more than 59,000, according to an update Wednesday from the Hamas-run Health Ministry in Gaza.
About two-thirds of the dead are believed to be women and children.
