US Secretary of State Antony Blinken was asked during a panel discussion at the Munich Security Conference regarding the continuation of the war in Gaza and the Biden administration’s policies regarding Israel.
“First, we’re committed to Israel’s security. That’s been clear from day one. It remains clear. And we understand and support the proposition that Israel has to find ways to make sure that what happened on October 7th never happens again.”
“We’re intensely driven to try to prevent or stop human suffering, including the suffering of men, women, and children in Gaza. The way Israel does that matters profoundly. We’ve seen this evolve over the last four months, things have happened as a result of our engagement, our intervention, that I would say probably would not have happened, almost certainly wouldn’t have happened without it. But it’s not enough; it’s insufficient.”
Foreign Minister Annalena Baerbock of Germany added: “First we didn’t have any humanitarian support; now we have at least a few trucks – not enough trucks. But also from the other understanding – and this is why I totally agree with the security guarantees for Israel – you cannot just say we need a ceasefire and the Israeli government, the IDF has to stop, and then we just wait and see what happens through the regrouping of Hamas. No, we have to give an answer to both legitimate security concerns.”
Indian External Affairs Minister Subrahmanyam Jaishankar added: “Number one, we must be clear that what happened on October 7th was terrorism. No caveats, no justification, no explanation. It was terrorism.”
“Number two, as Israel responds, it is important that Israel should be – should have been very mindful of civilian casualties, that it has an obligation to observe international humanitarian law.’
“Number three, the return of hostages is today imperative.”
“Number four, there is a need for a humanitarian corridor, a sustainable humanitarian corridor to provide relief. And eventually, there has to be a permanent fix, a long-term fix, otherwise we’re going to see a recurrence.”
“And I think today, suddenly – India has long believed in a two-state solution; we have maintained that position for many decades. And I think today, many more countries in the world today feel not just that a two-state solution is necessary, but it is more urgent than it was before.”