US Secretary of State Visits Israel for the First Time... Focus on Trump's 'Gaza Initiative' Discussion

U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio visited Israel for the first time since taking office.

Reuters Yonhap News

According to the Jerusalem Post and Times of Israel on the 16th (local time), Secretary Rubio arrived in Tel Aviv, Israel, on the night of the previous day after attending the Munich Security Conference (MSC) held in Germany on the 14th. On the same day, Rubio is scheduled to meet with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu to discuss the situation in the Middle East, including a ceasefire in the Gaza Strip.

In particular, the 'Gaza Strip plan' announced earlier this month by President Donald Trump is expected to be a major agenda item. President Trump proposed relocating Palestinian residents of the Gaza Strip to neighboring countries and having the U.S. take control of the area to develop it like a resort. While the Arab countries in the Middle East strongly opposed this, the Israeli government is generally positive.

Following his visit to Israel, Secretary Rubio plans to visit Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates (UAE) consecutively until the 18th. Saudi Arabia was mentioned as a possible venue for a summit between President Vladimir Putin of Russia and President Trump, who on the 12th declared the start of negotiations to end the war in Ukraine.

The U.S. political media outlet Politico reported that Mike Waltz, the White House National Security Advisor, will join Secretary Rubio in Saudi Arabia.