Blinken Pledges More Gaza Aid During Türkiye Visit

US Secretary of State Antony Blinken walks with Turkish Foreign Minister Hakan Fidan, after their meeting, amid the ongoing conflict between Israel and the Palestinian group Hamas, at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs in Ankara, Türkiye, November 6, 2023. (Reuters)
US Secretary of State Antony Blinken walks with Turkish Foreign Minister Hakan Fidan, after their meeting, amid the ongoing conflict between Israel and the Palestinian group Hamas, at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs in Ankara, Türkiye, November 6, 2023. (Reuters)
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Blinken Pledges More Gaza Aid During Türkiye Visit

US Secretary of State Antony Blinken walks with Turkish Foreign Minister Hakan Fidan, after their meeting, amid the ongoing conflict between Israel and the Palestinian group Hamas, at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs in Ankara, Türkiye, November 6, 2023. (Reuters)
US Secretary of State Antony Blinken walks with Turkish Foreign Minister Hakan Fidan, after their meeting, amid the ongoing conflict between Israel and the Palestinian group Hamas, at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs in Ankara, Türkiye, November 6, 2023. (Reuters)

US Secretary of State Antony Blinken said on Monday that Washington was working "very aggressively" to dramatically expand the amount of aid reaching trapped civilians in Gaza.

The top US diplomat held 2.5 hours of one-on-one talks with Turkish Foreign Minister Hakan Fidan focused on soothing the anger at both Israel and the West of one of Washington's most strategic but difficult allies.

NATO member Türkiye has been an increasingly vocal critic of the way Israel has been pursuing its month-long offensive against Hamas militants who staged an October 7 attack into Israel -- the deadliest in the country's history.

Police used tear gas and water cannon to disperse hundreds of protesters who marched on an air base housing US forces in southeastern Türkiye hours before Blinken's arrival Sunday.

Hundreds more rallied outside the Turkish foreign ministry during his visit.

Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan himself was travelling across Türkiye’s remote northeast on Monday in an apparent snub of Washington's top diplomat.

Blinken told reporters after the meeting that Washington was aware of "the deep concern" in Türkiye "for the terrible toll" in Gaza.

"We are working, as I said, very aggressively on getting more humanitarian assistance into Gaza and we have very concrete ways of doing that," Blinken said before boarding a plane for Japan.

"I think we will see in the days ahead that the assistance can expand in significant ways," he added without providing details.

A Turkish diplomatic source said Fidan pressed Blinken for "an immediate ceasefire in Gaza".

"Fidan also pointed out to his US counterpart Blinken that bombing civilian targets and destroying infrastructure in Gaza is unacceptable," the Turkish source said.

Tough talks

Blinken's talks with Fidan would have been packed with problems even before Israel launched a relentless bombing and expanding ground campaign aimed at eradicating Hamas.

The Hamas-run health ministry said nearly 10,000 people -- mostly civilians -- had been killed in more than four weeks of war in Gaza.

The operation started after the militants killed more than 1,400 people -- also mostly civilians -- and took over 240 hostages.

The war threatens to have broad repercussions on Washington's relations with Türkiye.

Ankara has a muscular foreign policy and stakes in conflicts across the Middle East that occasionally fail to align with those of Washington or other NATO allies.

Washington is currently anxious to see Türkiye’s parliament finally ratify Sweden's stalled drive to join the US-led NATO defense organization.

The United States has also been tightening sanctions against Turkish individuals and companies that are deemed to be helping Russia evade sanctions and import goods for use in its war on Ukraine.

And Ankara is upset that the US Congress is holding up the approval of a deal backed by President Joe Biden to modernize Türkiye’s air force with dozens of US F-16 fighter jets.

Türkiye also has longstanding reservations about US support for Kurdish forces in Syria who spearheaded the fight against ISIS group extremists but are viewed by Ankara as an offshoot of the banned Kurdistan Workers' Party (PKK).

Ankara has stepped up air strikes against armed Kurdish groups in Syria and Iraq in reprisal for an October attack on the Turkish capital claimed by the PKK in which two assailants died.

Blinken called his talks in Ankara "very good, lengthy and productive".

But he provided few details about the outstanding dispute and highlighted Türkiye’s "commitment" to accept Sweden into NATO.

Blinken faced a chorus of Arab calls to support an immediate ceasefire in Gaza during a whirlwind tour of the Middle East that saw him visit both Iraq and the West Bank on Sunday.

Israel says it could accept a humanitarian pause to allow in additional shipments of aid once Hamas frees the hostages.

Blinken said on Monday only that "pause could help" secure more aid deliveries to Gaza.



Danish PM Arrives in Greenland for Three-Day Visit amid Trump Pressure

Denmark's Prime Minister Mette Frederiksen, right, and her husband Bo Tengberg is greeted by Greenland's Acting Head of Government, Múte B. Egede after arriving at Nuuk airport, Greenland, Wednesday, April 2, 2025. (Ritzau Scanpix via AP)
Denmark's Prime Minister Mette Frederiksen, right, and her husband Bo Tengberg is greeted by Greenland's Acting Head of Government, Múte B. Egede after arriving at Nuuk airport, Greenland, Wednesday, April 2, 2025. (Ritzau Scanpix via AP)
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Danish PM Arrives in Greenland for Three-Day Visit amid Trump Pressure

Denmark's Prime Minister Mette Frederiksen, right, and her husband Bo Tengberg is greeted by Greenland's Acting Head of Government, Múte B. Egede after arriving at Nuuk airport, Greenland, Wednesday, April 2, 2025. (Ritzau Scanpix via AP)
Denmark's Prime Minister Mette Frederiksen, right, and her husband Bo Tengberg is greeted by Greenland's Acting Head of Government, Múte B. Egede after arriving at Nuuk airport, Greenland, Wednesday, April 2, 2025. (Ritzau Scanpix via AP)

Denmark's prime minister landed in Greenland on Wednesday for talks with the Danish semi-autonomous territory's incoming government, following US President Donald Trump's repeated expressions of interest in controlling the vast Arctic island.

Mette Frederiksen begins her three-day trip less than a week after a visit to the territory by US Vice President JD Vance received a frosty reception from authorities in Denmark and Greenland.

The Danish leader said ahead of her visit that she aims to strengthen Copenhagen's ties with the island and emphasized the importance of respectful cooperation amid what she described as "great pressure on Greenland".

Frederiksen was expected to speak to the media later on Wednesday.

Greenland's incoming Prime Minister Jens-Frederik Nielsen, who won last month's parliamentary election and will form a coalition government, has welcomed Frederiksen's trip, saying on Monday that Denmark remains "Greenland's closest partner".

Nielsen's new coalition is expected to formally take office on April 7.

Relations between Greenland and Denmark have been strained after revelations in recent years of historical mistreatment of Greenlanders under colonial rule. However, Trump's interest in controlling Greenland, part of a growing international focus on competition for influence in the Arctic, has prompted Denmark to hasten work to improve ties with the island.

Nielsen told Reuters late on Monday that Greenland would strengthen its ties with Denmark until it could fulfil its ultimate wish to become a sovereign nation.

'RESPECTFUL'

Meanwhile, Greenland wishes to establish a "respectful" relationship with the United States, he said.

"Talking about annexation and talking about acquiring Greenland and not respecting the sovereignty is not respectful. So let's start by being respectful to each other and build up a great partnership on everything," he said.

Frederiksen's visit is primarily about signaling support at a time of intense scrutiny, said Ulrik Pram Gad, an academic at the Danish Institute for International Studies.

"It is important for Denmark to signal to Greenland that Denmark is Greenland's closest friend and ally - and to the US that it stands behind Greenland," he said.

During his visit to a US military base in northern Greenland last Friday, Vance accused Denmark of not doing a good job of keeping the island safe and suggested the United States would better protect the strategically-located territory.

Frederiksen, who has said it is up to the people of Greenland to decide their own future, called Vance's description of Denmark "not fair".

Opinion polls show that a majority of Greenland's 57,000 inhabitants support independence from Denmark, but many oppose seeking independence too quickly, fearing their island could become worse off and expose itself to US interests.