QUESTION: Hamas has finally responded to the ceasefire deal laid out by the President almost two weeks ago. Let's do the top line first. Having seen that response, do you think a deal is more or less likely as we sit here today?
SECRETARY BLINKEN: Well, Savannah, the response we got was unfortunately not the yes that we were looking for, a yes that virtually the entire world has given. President Biden put out - laid out this proposal for an immediate ceasefire, getting all the hostages home, putting us on a path to enduring peace in Gaza and beyond. And what you saw in the time since he put that out almost two weeks ago was country after country coming out and supporting it - in the Arab world, and well beyond. The Israelis reconfirmed their support for it. The United Nations Security Council, which rarely speaks with one voice these days, was almost unanimous in its support.
So we were waiting for Hamas's response, and the response we got was to try to add new conditions to a proposal that everyone else had accepted. So we've got to see now if we can work through those, if we can bridge the gaps that Hamas has created by trying to impose new conditions - including, by the way, coming back on things that it already agreed to. But here's the thing: It took Hamas 12 days to respond. And the world didn't stand still during those 12 days. People continued to suffer during those 12 days. The longer this goes on, the more people will suffer. So Hamas has to demonstrate that it, too wants this to end. If it does, we can bring it to an end. If it doesn't, then it means that it wants the war to continue.
QUESTION: Well, you said yesterday at some point if one side continues to change its demands, you have to question whether they're proceeding in good faith. So let's be direct: Is Hamas negotiating in good faith?
SECRETARY BLINKEN: The proof will be in whether we can bring this to a conclusion, and bring it to a conclusion quickly, fast. From our perspective, it's time for the haggling to stop; it's time for a ceasefire to start. And you have one man who's probably somewhere deep underground in Gaza for Hamas, Mr. Sinwar, who's making all of these decisions. Well, he's relatively safe underground. The people that he purports to represent, they're suffering every day. So if he has their interests at heart, he will come to a conclusion to bring this to a conclusion.
QUESTION: Well, you've said that —
SECRETARY BLINKEN: But that needs to happen, and it needs to happen now.
QUESTION: And you've said that some demands are possibly workable, some are unworkable. Is that a diplomatic nicety? I mean, has essentially Hamas blown up the deal with this response?
SECRETARY BLINKEN: No, I don't think the deal is blown up; I think it's still - it's still possible. But at the end of the day, this has to come to a point where it's either yes or no.
QUESTION: On the other side of the table, you have, of course, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu. The centrist leader of his coalition quit this week, accusing Netanyahu of hesitancy and procrastination due to political considerations. Is Netanyahu stretching out the war for his own political reasons?
SECRETARY BLINKEN: Look, Prime Minister Netanyahu reconfirmed for me, when I saw him just a couple of days ago, that Israel supported this proposal and was ready to say yes. So the problem right now is Hamas.
QUESTION: NBC reported this week that the U.S. is considering cutting a deal with Hamas for the release of American hostages if this current deal falls apart. I'll save you the words. I know the plan A is the ceasefire deal that's on the table. But would the administration consider a unilateral deal to release American hostages?
SECRETARY BLINKEN: Savannah, when I was in Israel a couple of days ago, I met with the families of the American hostages. There are eight families. I've met with them repeatedly. President Biden has met with them; Jake Sullivan, the National Security Advisor, has met with them. And our commitment, my commitment, my priority is always going to be on American citizens wherever they're in harm's way. If they're being unjustly detained, if they're being held hostage, my number-one responsibility is to do everything I can to get them out of harm's way.
QUESTION: Is that a yes?
SECRETARY BLINKEN: Now, the best way to do that - no, the best way to do that is through this agreement. That's the fastest way to do it. If the agreement doesn't work, we'll always be looking at what we can do if there's anything we can do to get our people home.
QUESTION: Let's talk about the G7 summit, the President in meeting with Ukraine's President Zelenskyy, apologized for the delay in funding. How much of a setback was that to Ukraine's war effort?
SECRETARY BLINKEN: Well, it sure didn't help. I mean, we had months and months of delay with the supplemental budget request that the President made to get more assistance to Ukraine, and Russia took advantage of that delay. It took advantage of the fact that that assistance wasn't there. But since Congress came together on a bipartisan basis, both houses voting strongly for it after that delay, we've been doing everything we can to speed that assistance to Ukraine, to make sure that it's getting in the hands of the soldiers who are on the frontlines so that they can hold off this ongoing Russian onslaught - this ongoing Russian aggression.
And we've seen success in the last couple of weeks, the frontlines stabilizing and Ukraine holding strong. Here at the G7, we have countries coming together again to express their support for Ukraine. Later today, here in Italy, the President and President Zelenskyy are going to sign an agreement between the United States and Ukraine, a bilateral security agreement. What that means in plain English is that we're committing to support Ukraine as it builds up its defenses for the next 10 years, but we're not alone in doing that.
President Biden the last time that G7 - actually, the last time NATO came together a year ago, got countries throughout Europe and even beyond to commit to reaching their own agreements with Ukraine - 32 countries have agreed to do that. And this is a demonstration to Vladimir Putin that he cannot outlast Ukraine, he can't outlast us, he can't outlast all of Ukraine's partners. We're all committed to helping Ukraine make sure it can defend itself effectively far into the future.
QUESTION: Well, a lot of work on the table for the leaders there and yourself. Secretary of State Antony Blinken, thank you very much for your time.
SECRETARY BLINKEN: Thanks very much, Savannah.
