QUESTION: Okay. And thanks very much. Let's take that question to Secretary of State Antony Blinken right now. He joins us live in the studio. Do you think this can be contained?
SECRETARY BLINKEN: I do, and it needs to be contained. We're working to prevent escalation. We're working to make sure this doesn't get into a full-scale war. Look, Israel has a very legitimate problem it has to solve. Right after the horrific events of October 7th, Hizballah in the north, from Lebanon, starting lobbing rockets into Israel. People who lived in northern Israel had to flee their homes - homes were destroyed; villages were destroyed - about 70,000 Israelis. Israel started responding. You have Lebanese in southern Lebanon who've also had to flee their homes. We want to see people get back to their homes. The best way to do that is through a diplomatic agreement - pulls the forces back, creates space and security so that people can get back to their homes, kids can get back to school. That's what we're working on.
QUESTION: Do you have any objections to the way Israel is prosecuting the war right now?
SECRETARY BLINKEN: Look, you've got a group in Hizballah that's a designated terrorist organization. Back in 2000, Israel got out of southern Lebanon, which it had been occupying. All of these groups, including Hizballah, were supposed to put down their weapons. Hizballah didn't do it. It attacked Israel repeatedly in the ensuing years. It created insecurity in northern Israel. And then since October 7th it's really ramped that up. So this is an important problem to solve, get people back to their homes. But the best way to do it, George, is through diplomacy. If there were a full-scale war - and we've managed to avert one until now. We've had a number of times since October 7th where we seemed to be on the verge of it. Deterrence, diplomacy by the United States prevented that from happening. But if there were to be a full-scale war, that wouldn't solve the problem. It wouldn't get people back to their homes.
QUESTION: Let's talk about Ukraine and Russia right now. President Zelenskyy is going to be visiting the White House tomorrow, visiting President Biden tomorrow. He has what he's calling a victory plan.
SECRETARY BLINKEN: Yeah.
QUESTION: He's going to unfold that tomorrow, wants permission to strike deeper inside Russia. Will he get it?
SECRETARY BLINKEN: So I was in Kyiv a couple of weeks ago with President Zelenskyy. I heard parts of this plan, but he's going to present the entire plan to President Biden when he sees him this week, and we're awaiting that. Look, every step along the way since before the Russian invasion, we've tried to make sure that Ukraine had what it needed when it needed it to defend against Russian aggression. We got them Stingers, Javelins before the Russian aggression because we saw it coming. That prevented the takeover of the country, the erasing of Ukraine from the map. The Ukrainians were able to repel the Russians, push them back. Every day since, we've been working to adapt and adjust depending on the battlefield needs, what does Ukraine need in any given moment. We'll continue to do that.
QUESTION: What about striking inside Russia?
SECRETARY BLINKEN: Look, we're looking at how we can make sure that Ukraine is most effective in deterring and dealing with this Russian aggression. And they have extraordinary means at their disposal, starting with their own resilience. We're going to make sure that they have what they need to succeed.
QUESTION: Yesterday former President Trump expressed serious doubts about Ukraine's ability to win this war. He also praised Russia's military saying they beat Hitler, they beat Napolean. Do you have doubts about Ukraine's ability to win this war?
SECRETARY BLINKEN: No, I don't, George. And in fact, to the contrary, remember what Putin tried to do. He tried to come in and erase Ukraine from the map. He's failed in that. That is not going to succeed. The challenge now is to make sure that Ukraine can be a strong independent country that stands up militarily, economically, democratically. We're working to ensure that, and not just us - more than 50 countries.
Look, and this matters. It matters to the United States. It's not just about Ukraine. We're here in New York for this UN General Assembly. The UN was created after two world wars to make sure there wouldn't be another. And one of the things that it did was it got countries together and say - to say there are basic rules of the road. One country can't simply attack another, redraw its borders by force, dictate to another country its future, its decisions.
That's what's going on in Ukraine. And if we allow that to happen with impunity, if we allow those basic principles, those basic rules to be violated, then its open season. Would-be aggressors everywhere will say hey, we can get away with it too. That's a world full of conflict, not a good world for the United States. That's why, with so many other countries, we've been working to help Ukraine not only defend itself but defend these principles that are at the heart of the international system.
QUESTION: Secretary Blinken, thanks, as always, for your time.
SECRETARY BLINKEN: Thanks, George.
