Blinken Says Biden Administration To Focus On Guantanamo In 'Months Ahead'

MOSCOW (UrduPoint News / Sputnik - 03rd May, 2021) US Secretary of State Antony Blinken has confirmed the plans of President Joe Biden's administration to close the notorious Guantanamo Bay detention facility.

"We believe that it [Guantanamo] should be [closed], that's certainly a goal, but it's something that we'll bring some focus to in the months ahead," Blinken said on Sunday on CBS news' "60 Minutes."

White House Press Secretary Jen Psaki told reporters in February that the Biden administration intended to close the Guantanamo Bay detention center by the end of Biden's term in office.

The prison for international terrorists was established at the US naval base on the shore of Guantanamo Bay in Cuba after the 2001 War on Terror. The facility has long been criticized for mistreatment of prisoners and abuses, with human rights activists and international organizations calling for its closure.

In February, the United Nations said that the Biden administration's review of the Guantanamo Bay detention center must ensure that remedies are provided for detainees that have been tortured there. The remaining 40 detainees at the detention center are now elderly individuals affected by the physical and psychological torture, the UN said, adding that Washington must ensure it never repeats the same practices again and that crimes committed at the detention center do not remain unpunished.

During his presidency, Barack Obama repeatedly promised to shut down Guantanamo Bay but never fulfilled his promise, amid resistance from the Pentagon and Congress.