WASHINGTON — The latest war between Israel and Hamas militants will not distract the United States from its involvement in Indo-Pacific issues, a senior official said Tuesday, at a time when the bloodiest assault on the Jewish state in decades raises doubts about the ability of Washington to maintain China as the top priority in its foreign policy.

National Security Adviser Jake Sullivan said the United States is capable of providing assistance to Israel while also continuing support for Washington's allies in Asia as well as for Ukraine amid the Russian invasion.

• Total siege of Gaza 'prohibited' under international law: UN

"We believe we have the resources, tools and capacities to be able to effectively do that," Sullivan said at a press briefing. "And part of our job is to ensure that we are working across all of these theaters at once, and that's precisely what we're doing each day."

He made the comments when asked whether the war that erupted with a surprise Hamas attack on Israel on Saturday will make it more difficult for the administration of President Joe Biden to remain committed to Ukraine and stability in the Indo-Pacific, where China has been increasingly demonstrating its military might.

• Israel says 1,500 Hamas militants dead after battles near Gaza

The attack by the Palestinian group Hamas, which rules the Gaza Strip, shocked the world and triggered a fresh round of geopolitical tensions, presenting a huge challenge for Biden, who is seeking reelection in 2024.

While some US Republicans and critics of the Biden administration have started arguing that the United States cannot provide simultaneous support in two separate wars, Sullivan said, "We firmly reject (such a) notion."

On Ukraine, which has been fighting Russian forces since Moscow began its full-scale invasion in 2022, he said it is "so much more cost-effective to take the action now" as opposed to paying a huge price later, "a price that might ultimately, as it has in the past, require the actual deployment of American troops to combat."

He emphasized that it will be better to assist Ukraine in standing firm against Russia's aggression and do so on "a sustained basis," adding that the United States has enough budget flexibility to provide assistance on two fronts.

Shortly before the press briefing, Biden spoke to the nation from the White House and denounced the Hamas assault over the weekend as "sheer evil" and "terrorism," while expressing unequivocal support for Israel.

"Let there be no doubt. The United States has Israel's back," he said in a speech that lasted about 10 minutes. "We'll make sure that the Jewish and democratic state of Israel can defend itself, today, tomorrow, as we always have. It's as simple as that."

• US deploying ships closer to Israel, sends munitions

To reaffirm the Biden administration's solidarity with Israel, US Secretary of State Antony Blinken is scheduled to leave for Israel on Wednesday.

Blinken is expected to arrive in Israel on Thursday to meet with senior officials and also visit Jordan, according to Matthew Miller, the department's top spokesman.

With the conflict expected to be prolonged, the United States said it has begun providing necessary munitions and military equipment to Israel.

On Tuesday, the US Central Command said that the Ford carrier strike group had arrived in the Eastern Mediterranean.

The arrival of the strike group, led by one of the world's largest aircraft carriers, is intended to "deter any actor seeking to escalate the situation or widen this war," the command said in a statement.