US Secretary of State Antony Blinken will join a rare summit of Arab and Israeli nations held in Israel on Monday, seeking to reassure Middle Eastern allies over a looming Iran nuclear deal and to garner stronger support for Ukraine.
Blinken, who is on a three-nation Middle East and North Africa tour, on Sunday met with Israeli Prime Minister Naftali Bennett who tested positive for coronavirus early on Monday. A State Department spokesperson said Blinken was considered a close contact and would get tested.
The summit, dubbed historic by Israel and the four Arab nations attending — Bahrain, Egypt, Morocco and the United Arab Emirates, comes as US allies in the Middle East raise concerns over what they see as a lack of commitment by President Joe Biden’s administration to the region.
Washington has repeatedly said it remains deeply invested in the region but its focus has been elsewhere — strategically on China and in the near-term on Russia’s invasion of Ukraine which started on February 24 and has killed thousands.
Blinken has sought to reassure allies over Iran. Speaking in Jerusalem alongside his Israeli counterpart Yair Lapid, Blinken said on Sunday that restoring a 2015 nuclear deal was the best way to rein in Iran’s nuclear programme.
Source: Reuters
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