The war between Israel and Hamas crowds the crisis-laden global agenda as Blinken and G7 foreign ministers meet in Japan.

TOKYO (AP) — Fresh from A A quick tour of the Middle East, US Secretary of State Antony Blinken has turned his intense diplomacy to Israel-Hamas war He and his G7 counterparts headed to Asia on Tuesday, where they began two days of talks in Japan.

The devastating month-long conflict in Gaza and efforts to mitigate the dire humanitarian impacts of Israel’s response to the crisis Fatal Hamas attack on October 7 It is set to be the main focus of the meeting. But with the Russia-Ukraine war, fears that North Korea may be preparing to conduct a new nuclear test, and concerns about China’s increasing global aggression, this crisis is not the only one on the agenda.

“Even as we are intensely focused on the crisis in Gaza, we are also very engaged and focused on the important work we are doing in the Indo-Pacific region and in other parts of the world,” Blinken told reporters in Ankara. And Turkey before leaving the Middle East for Asia.

In Tokyo, Blinken and the foreign ministers of Britain, Canada, France, Germany, Japan and Italy will search for common ground on ways to deal with the war between Israel and Hamas that threatens to destabilize the already fragile security situation in the greater Middle East, and seek to maintain the status quo. Agreed positions on other issues.

Before concluding the Middle East portion of his trip — which lasted four days and included stops in Israel, Jordan, the West Bank, Cyprus, Iraq and Turkey — Blinken said he would update his G7 colleagues on the status of his efforts, seeking their feedback. Advice and move on.

“I will have the opportunity to share with my colleagues what we have learned and done during this journey, and to continue this work and move it forward,” he said.

These efforts include significant expansion The volume of humanitarian aid Sending it to Gaza, which prompted Israel to agree to this A “temporary pause” in its military operation To allow this aid in and more civilians out, and begin planning for the region’s post-conflict governance and security system and prevent the spread of war.

Blinken described all of this as a “work in progress” and acknowledged deep divisions over the concept of a pause. Israel remains unconvinced, and Arab and Islamic countries are demanding an immediate, complete ceasefire, something the United States opposes. There has also been resistance to discussing the future of Gaza, with Arab countries insisting that the immediate humanitarian crisis must be addressed first.

Gaining approval from G7 members, none of whom have borders and are not directly involved in the conflict, may be a less daunting challenge for Blinken.

Since before Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, the G7 has remained consistent in defending the international order that emerged from the devastation of World War II. Despite some disagreements on the sides, the group maintained a united front in condemning and opposing the Russian war.

Likewise, the group has been unified in demanding that North Korea halt its nuclear weapons and ballistic missile programs, and for China to exercise its growing international influence responsibly, as well as in calling for cooperative action to combat epidemics, synthetic opioids, and threats from abuse. artificial intelligence.

However, the Gaza crisis has inflamed international opinion, and democracies have not been immune to the intense sentiment manifested in the massive pro-Palestinian and anti-Israel demonstrations in the G7 capitals and elsewhere.