As the situation in Gaza reaches a critical point, Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan hosted a meeting with U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken. The discussions centered around the escalating conflict in Gaza and deliberations on Sweden’s potential accession to NATO.
Washington’s top diplomat discussed the Israel-Hamas war with Turkey’s mercurial leader on Saturday before flying to Crete to address Greek concerns about the looming sale of US fighter jets to Ankara.
US Secretary of State Antony Blinken’s high-stakes meeting with one of Washington’s most unruly NATO allies came on the first leg of a trip that includes visits to Israel and West Bank.
Blinken’s fourth crisis tour of the three-month-old Gaza war comes with fears mounting that the conflict could engulf swathes of the Middle East.
The State Department said Blinken “emphasised the need to prevent the conflict from spreading” during more than an hour of talks with President Recep Tayyip Erdogan.
Blinken stressed the need to “work toward broader, lasting regional peace that ensures Israel’s security and advances the establishment of a Palestinian state,” the State Department said.
A Turkish diplomatic source said Foreign Minister Hakan Fiden pressed Blinken during a separate meeting for an “immediate ceasefire” that could ensure the smooth delivery of aid.
Istanbul served as a base for Hamas political leaders until raids on Israel killed around 1,140 people and triggered a reprisal offensive that the Gaza health ministry says has claimed more than 22,700 lives — most of them women and children.
Turkey asked the Hamas chiefs to leave after some were captured on video celebrating the deadliest attack in Israel’s history.
Marie de La Roche Saint-André, with AFP
