Antony Blinken

Day 706 of the invasion of Ukraine. Summary of key events in the last 24 hours:

Athens appears to have extracted a commitment from Washington that the green light on the USA's F-16 fighter jet sale to Turkey will be accompanied by a condition that they will not be used in offensive actions against Greece.

Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis on Monday referred to the US State Department's approval of the sale of up to 40 advanced F-35 fighter jets to Greece, as well as the accompanying letter from US Secretary of State Antony Blinken, saying that these developments "confirm the strategic depth of relations between the US and Greece."

Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis welcomed on Saturday the US State Department's decision to approve the sale of up to 40 advanced F-35 fighter jets to Greece.

Mitsotakis described the approval as "an important day for our national defense and for Greek diplomacy." He also received a letter from US Secretary of State Antony Blinken in relation to the decision.

Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis has welcomed the US State Department's decision to give the green light to the sale of Lockheed Martin F-35 stealth fighter jets to Greece, describing it as "an important day for our national defense and for Greek diplomacy."

The package to assist Greece with military systems from the US Armed Forces' arsenal is expected to be officially announced on Saturday morning in Athens in a letter from Secretary of State Antony Blinken to Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis. 

President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan has expressed Türkiye's expectation from the United States to begin a process for the sale of 40 new F-16 warfighters and additional modernization kits after he approved Sweden's accession protocol to NATO.

President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan has officially approved Sweden's entry into NATO with a formal decree, capping off a process that began with parliamentary approval for the Nordic country's bid.

"With this, a key milestone has been reached in Sweden's path towards NATO membership," Swedish Prime Minister Ulf Kristersson said on X, welcoming Türkiye's move.

The United States has reportedly reached out to China, urging them to use their influence with Tehran to put an end to the ship attacks carried out by Yemen's Iran-affiliated Houthi rebels. Despite repeated discussions on the matter, Washington has encountered limited cooperation from Beijing, as reported by the Financial Times, citing US officials.

Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis and the US Secretary of State Antony Blinken discussed developments in the Gaza Strip and the Red Sea, as well as concerns over free navigation amid Houthi attacks over the phone on Monday.