U.S. Secretary of state Blinken to visit Turkey tomorrow: Topics include Gaza, Sweden, and F-16s

U.S. State Department Spokesperson Matthew Miller, in a daily press briefing, stated that Blinken will depart tonight and visit Turkey, Greece, Jordan, Qatar, UAE, Saudi Arabia, Israel, West Bank, and Egypt throughout the week to discuss a series of critical issues with his counterparts.

Miller shared that Blinken will exchange views with other foreign ministers on topics such as "Israel's ongoing military operations against Hamas post-October 7, urgent measures to increase humanitarian aid to Gaza, and the release of remaining hostages."

Matthew Miller conveyed that during his visit to Turkey, Secretary Blinken will discuss "long-standing regional cooperation," including the final steps towards approving Sweden's NATO membership.

State Department Spokesperson Miller mentioned that in Greece, following Turkey, Blinken will focus on providing support to Ukraine and maintaining regional maritime security.

Miller stated, "We don't expect every conversation on this trip to be easy. Frankly, there are tough problems in the region and difficult choices ahead."

Expressing that Antony Blinken believes it's the responsibility of the U.S. to lead diplomatic efforts to directly address these challenges, Miller noted that Blinken "is ready to do this in the coming days."

With the completion of his engagements next week, Blinken will have visited the region for the fourth time since October 7.