US Secretary of State Anthony Blinken called on Friday, in a phone call to his Israeli counterpart, Gabi Ashkenazi, for Israel to ensure "equal treatment between Palestinians and Israelis," according to the US State Department.
State Department spokesman Ned Price said after the phone call between Blinken and Ashkenazi that the US Secretary of State "stressed the administration´s conviction that Israelis and Palestinians should enjoy an equal degree of freedom, security, prosperity and democracy."
He added that the two foreign ministers discussed "humanitarian aid to the Palestinians" which was resumed by President Joe Biden´s administration after former President Donald Trump had suspended it.
He added that Blinken reaffirmed the firm support of the United States for Israel and its security, and his commitment to strengthening all aspects of the US-Israeli partnership. He also expressed support for the agreements concluded by Israel last year to normalize relations with four other Arab countries.
This call comes while Israel is witnessing an atmosphere of political uncertainty after the Likud party led by Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu won the largest number of votes and at the same time failed to secure a majority in the fourth elections within two years.
After four years of pro-Israel US policy during the Trump era, and his recognition of Jerusalem as the capital of Israel, causing the collapse of dialogue between Washington and the Palestinians, the Biden administration has partially resumed diplomacy closer to international consensus.
The new administration did not retract the decision on Jerusalem, but it publicly called again for the adoption of a solution based on Israeli and Palestinian "two states", a solution that the previous Republican administration had abandoned.
