The Prime Minister this evening had a call with President Biden.
A Downing Street spokesperson said:
“The Prime Minister spoke to US President Biden this evening.
“They discussed the situation in Israel and Gaza, and the urgent
need to secure the release of Israeli hostages while alleviating
the very real impact of the conflict on civilians in Gaza. The
Prime Minister stressed that supporting Israel in its efforts to
defeat the threat from Hamas does not detract from the need for
the IDF to take greater care to protect civilians and operate
within International Humanitarian Law.
“The Prime Minister and President Biden resolved to continue
working together to encourage further humanitarian pauses to get
hostages out of Gaza and allow more aid to enter. As part of this
they underscored the need to open more aid routes into Gaza,
including at Ashdod, while simultaneously increasing the
efficiency of existing routes. The leaders also agreed that a
two-state solution which allows Israelis and Palestinians to live
in peace and security is more important than ever.
“The Prime Minister and President Biden paid tribute to the
British and American personnel who are currently working closely
together to uphold freedom of navigation and protect lives in the
Red Sea. The Prime Minister passed on his condolences on the
death of two US Navy Seals confirmed today.
“The leaders condemned the surge in violent Houthi attacks on
commercial ships transiting the area and undertook to continue
efforts alongside international partners to deter and disrupt
those attacks. This includes work through the multinational
Operation Prosperity Guardian, putting diplomatic pressure on
Iran to cease their support of Houthi activity and, as needed,
targeted military action to degrade Houthi capabilities.
“The Prime Minister updated President Biden on his recent
announcement of £2.5 billion of further military support for
Ukraine alongside the signing of a new UK-Ukraine bilateral
security agreement. The leaders agreed that it is paramount that
the world continues to back Ukraine as it resists unprovoked
Russian aggression.”
