Washington: US Secretary of State Marco Rubio has said that President Trump is unhappy over the recent incidents in Qatar, the Israeli attack may affect negotiations, but this situation will not affect relations with Israel.
US Secretary of State Marco Rubio claimed that Qatar has not yet reached the conclusion on what to demand from allies in response to the Israeli attack.
When asked whether he would speak to the Prime Minister regarding the summit to be held in Qatar on Monday, Marco Rubio said that he had a brief conversation with the Qatari Prime Minister on the matter, however, he is not sure whether Qatar has yet reached the conclusion of what it will demand from its allies. The US is certainly not participating in the meeting taking place in Qatar, but Qatar has not yet concluded what message will be presented in the meeting.
Marco Rubio said that he had met the Qatari Prime Minister in Washington, and that there are relations with Qatar which are important in several matters. There is good partnership with the Qatari government on many issues.
Answering questions at the time of departure from the US to Israel, the US Secretary of State said that his focus is on how to move forward, Hamas still needs to be dealt with, and he claimed that no one in the region wants to see Hamas there.
When asked whether he would tell Israel not to attack Qatar again, Marco Rubio said that President Trump’s reaction makes it clear, the President did not like how all of this happened.
The US Secretary of State clarified that this situation will not affect relations with Israel. Marco Rubio said that such things happen in which we are not one hundred percent in agreement, this will not change the nature of US-Israel relations. US-Israel relations are very strong and will remain so.
We will have to talk to Israel about what effects this will have.
In response to a question, Marco Rubio said that the US does have influence over Israel, but it cannot be called leverage. We will express our influence and President Trump’s views.
Answering questions regarding the attack on Hamas leadership in Qatar, the US Secretary of State said that they will talk to Israel about what effects this will have on achieving objectives. Effects on the release of hostages, eliminating Hamas, and ending the war will also be discussed.
Marco Rubio avoided answering whether there was US support in the attack on Gaza City, however, he said that President Trump wants the threat of Hamas to be eliminated and to move towards the next phase. The next phase is reconstruction of Gaza, providing security, and ensuring that Hamas cannot return. The US Secretary of State said that President Trump wants the release of all hostages and an end to the conflict.
The US Secretary of State said that 48 hostages should be released immediately and together. After the issue ends, Gaza will be reconstructed. Then it will have to be seen who will carry out the reconstruction, who will spend the money, and who will be in charge of the process.
When asked whether Israel should end the operation in Gaza City, Marco Rubio said that we are certainly not talking about that matter. We only want to know what should happen next.
Referring to the Israeli Prime Minister’s recognition of Jewish settlements, a journalist asked that people are saying now the Palestinian state may never be established.
The US Secretary of State said that one reason for this is the reaction of Israel to the recognition of Palestine by various countries including Canada and European countries. He also referred to the meetings held at the United Nations on Palestine and said that the US had warned the world about what could or would be the result of such actions.
Marco Rubio said that he is sure that this issue will also be discussed with the Israeli leadership.
When asked whether the Israeli action will not increase tensions with the Palestinians, Marco Rubio claimed that this issue began with countries recognizing Palestine. We will, overall, talk to the Israeli leadership about what its impact will be.
