During a State Department press conference with NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg, Secretary of State Antony Blinken reiterated the need for diplomacy between Israel and Hezbollah. As the United States strives to quell Israeli intentions to strike Hezbollah, Blinken contended with journalists pressing for an admission of discord with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu.
Blinken stated his belief that neither Israel nor Hezbollah desires an escalation of the conflict. “Lebanon certainly does not want this, as it would bear the brunt,” he remarked. “I also doubt Iran wishes for it, yet there seems to be a momentum heading in that direction.”
According to Blinken, the threat posed by Hezbollah has rendered life untenable, with numerous individuals in Southern Lebanon unable to reside in their homes and towns. He further mentioned that the escalation near the Jordanian border has forced many Israelis to abandon their homes as well.
The Secretary has once again attributed the tensions to Hamas’s lack of good faith in seeking a diplomatic solution to the conflict in Gaza. “Now, here again, so much of this comes back to the ceasefire. The most immediate way to empower our diplomacy and to be able to reach an agreement that allows people to return to their homes and live in security would be through a ceasefire in Gaza,” Blinken said. “Because Hezbollah has tied the actions that it’s committing against Israel to Gaza.”
The press further questioned Blinken on whether there was a disagreement with Netanyahu, who accused the United States of delaying arms shipments to his government during the war. The prime minister expressed gratitude to the White House for its support following the October 7 terror attacks, and then added on Tuesday that it was “inconceivable that in the past few months, the administration has been withholding weapons and ammunition to Israel”.
Netanyahu stated that during his recent meeting in Israel, he had a “frank discussion” about arms supplies with Mr. Blinken. “Secretary Blinken has given assurances that the administration is tirelessly working to eliminate these obstacles,” he remarked. “I certainly hope that is true. It ought to be true.”
The Israeli Prime Minister argued that increasing the flow of US weapons would expedite the end of the war.
Secretary Blinken promptly noted that the US had withheld a widely publicized shipment of 2,000-pound bombs. However, less than two weeks after stating he would consider withholding more arms to Israel if they crossed a red line in Rafah, President Joe Biden approved a new package. This package, reportedly including about $700 million for tank ammunition, $500 million in tactical vehicles, and $60 million in mortar rounds, was disclosed. Blinken confirmed that all other shipments had been dispatched as scheduled. Additionally, the Biden administration is reportedly advancing what is presumed to be the largest weapons package for Israel, expected to exceed $18 billion, which includes approximately 50 state-of-the-art F-15 fighter jets.
A report by the Foundation for Defense of Democracies indicates an abundance of arms shipments to Israel, to the extent that a senior Pentagon official noted challenges in securing enough cargo aircraft for delivery. The Foundation compiled a list from news reports and official data detailing the delivered weapons, which included air defense systems, precision-guided munitions, artillery shells, tank rounds, small arms, drone-operated Hellfire missiles, 30-mm cannon ammunition, PVS-14 night vision devices, and disposable shoulder-fired rockets.
Blinken and Biden have reiterated the United States’ commitment to Israel’s security, emphasizing that the red line regarding Rafah has not been crossed, which is why the arms flow has not diminished, except for one shipment. Israel was not adequately prepared for an extensive, large-scale combined arms operation involving air and ground forces across multiple fronts, let alone a regional war.
The Israel Defense Forces’ (IDF) current operations in Gaza have surpassed the scope and duration of the 2006 Lebanon War and other significant conflicts involving Israel. Given Israel’s reliance on U.S. security assistance to confront Hamas, it is understandable that Israelis and the U.S. are concerned about a war with Hezbollah, because they are considerably more powerful than Hamas and better armed than they were in 2006.