The risks of a presidential visit to Israel are not small. On Monday, as Antony Blinken met with Benjamin Netanyahu in Tel Aviv, air sirens blared, forcing the two men to shelter in place.
Biden had been deliberating whether to make a wartime visit to Israel, a trip fraught with risk that could stand as a dramatic show of support for a top US ally while sending a warning to other countries in the region against escalation.
"It is critical that aid begin flowing into Gaza as soon as possible," Blinken said, speaking from a US diplomatic building in Tel Aviv. Aside from a high-profile show of support for Israel, the trip will send a warning to other players in the region, namely Iran and its Hezbollah proxy in Lebanon, about becoming further engaged in the conflict.
Secretary of State Antony Blinken has been meeting with a number of senior officials across the Middle East. While Biden has stopped well short of encouraging a ceasefire – the word hasn't been used at all in the administration's response so far – he has issued steadily stronger warnings about protecting civilian life, including during his telephone calls with Netanyahu.
Israeli armored personnel carriers maneuver at an area along the border with Gaza, southern Israel, 15 October 2023. "The most senior representative of the USA comes to Israel for a full report on the war in the Middle East and all the action we have to take," Rear Admiral Daniel Hagari told reporters when asked earlier about a possible visit by the US president.
But unlike his visit to Ukraine earlier this year, his expected trip to Israel this week marks a remarkably swift decision to visit the country only days after the outbreak of war. US national security adviser Jake Sullivan said Sunday that the administration was engaged in back-channel diplomacy with Tehran to send the same message it has been conveying publicly about not escalating the crisis further."But they're backing it up with hardware."
"We can't rule out that Iran would choose to get directly engaged some way. We have to prepare for every possible contingency," Sullivan said on CBS.The outbreak of violence is forcing the Biden administration to closely engage with – and heavily lean on – actors in the region with histories of glaring human rights violations.
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