U.S. President Joe Biden declared in a televised address on Oct. 25 that, when it came to relations between Palestine and Israel, "There's no going back to the status quo as it stood on October 6," the day before Hamas launched its surprise attack on Israel, triggering Israel's ongoing attack on Gaza.  

Biden's words echoed those of his secretary of state, Antony Blinken, who the day before told the United Nations Security Council there could be no peace in the Middle East without the Palestinian people "realizing their legitimate right to self-determination and a state of their own." 

Blinken followed up this pronouncement on Nov. 3, declaring in a press conference that the U.S. was committed to a two-state solution for Israeli and Palestinian states. "The best viable path, indeed the only path, is through a two-state solution," Blinken said. "The only way to end the cycle of violence once and for all."