The US Secretary of State Anthony Blinken “reiterated today that the US supports tangible steps towards the creation of a Palestinian state” during the meeting he had with the president of the Palestinian Authority Mahmoud Abbas in Ramallah, in the occupied West Bank.

The head of US diplomacy also insisted that “all Palestinian taxes collected by Israel (must) be systematically transferred to the Palestinian Authority, based on previous agreements”, while Israel blocks these resources, which causes financial difficulties for the Palestinian Authority.

During his meeting with Abbas, Blinken also stressed the need to adopt “administrative reforms” that could “benefit the Palestinian people.”

This meeting took place a day after the talks he had with me Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and his war cabinet on Israel’s war with Hamas, regional tensions and the future of the Israeli-Palestinian conflict.

Blinken, who called on Israel to protect Palestinian civilians in the war against Hamas in the Gaza Strip, met with Abbas today mainly to raise the issue of the post-war situation in the Palestinian enclave.

Last night the US Secretary of State he said at a news conference he conceded that during his meeting with Abbas he would discuss the Palestinian Authority’s responsibility to reform and improve its governance, echoing Washington’s belief that the 88-year-old Abbas should move forward with restructuring Palestinian Authority preparing her for the governance of Gaza after the war.

Blinken’s visit to Israel and the West Bank follows his tour of Arab states Washington’s allies, who he said want closer ties with Israel, but only if that includes a “practical path” leading to a Palestinian state.

In an interview yesterday, Blinken declined to comment on how Netanyahu and his cabinet have responded to his call for a Palestinian state. He noted that Israel will have to make “hard decisions, hard choices” to take advantage of the opportunity offered by regional integration.

Today the US Secretary of State will also go to Bahrain, adding another stop to his marathon diplomatic tour of the Middle East, according to a State Department official.

Bahrain is home to a major US base, where the US 5th Fleet is stationed.

There he is expected to meet mainly King Hamad Bin Isa al Khalifa in the context of the contacts he has on the means of avoiding an escalation of