The US Secretary of State is in Israel to discuss the response from Hamas to a proposed ceasefire in Gaza and the release of hostages.
Antony Blinken has said he thinks an agreement "is possible" but admits "there's still a lot of work to do".
Speaking in Doha on Tuesday as part of a whistle-stop tour of the region, Mr Blinken said the US will use 'every tool' deescalate the situation.
"There's still a lot of work to be done, but we continue to believe that an agreement is possible and, indeed, essential," he said.
"We will continue to work relentlessly to achieve it".
"We are responding to violence, not initiating it. We're seeking to prevent escalation, not fuel it.
"And as we do this, we will continue to use every tool available to us to reach an extended pause that gets hostages out, that gets more assistance in, that brings calm to Gaza's civilians, and that keeps diplomacy moving forward toward an integrated and more secure region".
US Secretary of State Antony Blinken at a press conference in Doha with Qatar's Prime Minister Sheikh Mohammed bin Abdulrahman bin Jassim Al Thani, 6-2-24. Image: US Department of StateSpeaking at a joint news conference with Mr Blinken, Qatar's Prime Minister Sheikh Mohammed bin Abdulrahman bin Jassim Al Thani said the Palestinian militants did have some comments on the framework but the response was overall positive.
He declined to give further details due to the sensitivity of the situation, but said he was 'optimistic' and that the response had been handed to Israel.
'Extended calm'
Mr Blinken said he believed the best path forward "is through an agreement on the hostages."
"And of course, now that we have the response from Hamas to the proposal that was put on the table a week or so ago, we’re going to be very intensely focused on that," he said.
"That offers the prospect of extended calm, hostages out, more assistance in. That would clearly be beneficial to everyone, and I think that offers the best path forward.
"But there is a lot of work to be done to achieve it. We’re very focused on doing that work," he added.
Hostage exchange
Qatar has been involved in mediating talks between Israel and Hamas, who have refused to speak directly.
It is understood the militant group wants to exchange hostages for Palestinians held in Israeli prisons.
Hamas says it has submitted its response to the proposed ceasefire agreement for Gaza devised by Egypt and Qatar.
Senior Hamas official Ghazi Hamad said the militant group is pushing for the release of the largest possible number of Palestinians being held in Israeli prisons.
Palestinians look at a mosque destroyed in an Israeli strike in Rafah, Gaza Strip, 24-1-24. Image: Associated Press / AlamyIt comes after Hamas said earlier that it had submitted its response to a proposed ceasefire agreement for Gaza devised by Qatar and Egypt.
Under the terms of the deal the group would release hostages in exchange for an extended pause in fighting in Gaza.
"[Benjamin] Netanyahu is trying to make everyone believe that he has or will achieve victory to preserve his coalition government," Hamad said.
He also provided some insight into why Hamas took time to put forward it response to the proposed agreement, saying "many of [its] issues were unclear and ambiguous".
Israel wants the return of hostages being held in Gaza, but Hamas has said it will only do so if a ceasefire is called.
At least 20,000 Palestinians in Gaza have been reported killed since Israel began bombing the territory in the wake of Hamas's October 7th attacks during which more than 200 people were taken hostage.
