Rubio Offers Reconciliation With Europe, On US Terms
By Kjeld Neubert
(EurActiv) -- US Secretary of State Marco Rubio addressed the Munich Security Conference on Saturday, seeking to reassure European partners that the United States still wants to work together, but in a way that fits the vision of his boss, US President Donald Trump.
Rubio sought to strike a conciliatory tone, reassuring Washington’s traditional allies that the US and Europe are inextricably linked by common culture and history, an idea the US State Department has promoted previously on its Substack. However, the subtext of the speech suggested that Europe should work with the US on Washington’s terms, modifying its policies to appease the Trump administration.
Rubio criticised the decision of “many nations” to subsidize their welfare states “at the cost of their ability to defend themselves,” a clear reference to Washington’s push to get Europe to spend more on its defence. He also criticised green energy policies, saying they were implemented to appease a “climate cult.”
“The United States and Europe, we belong together,” Rubio said. “We want Europe to be strong. We believe that Europe must survive.”
But the US Secretary of State called on Europe to join the US on the path that the Trump administration is forging, arguing that Europe needs to fix its “broken status quo.”
“For we in America have no interest in being polite and orderly caretakers of the West’s managed decline,” he said.
Rubio also criticised the “overused” focus on a rules based global order and liberal immigration policies.
“We can no longer place the so-called global order above the vital interests of our people and our nations,” he said.
Nevertheless, the speech was a sharp departure from last year’s address by US Vice President JD Vance, who framed Europe as an enemy to democracy.
“We do not seek to separate, but to revitalise an old friendship and renew the greatest civilisation in human history,” Rubio told the Munich Security Conference. “What we want is a reinvigorated alliance.”