Reminding his audience at the annual Munich Security Conference about America’s centuries-long roots in Europe, Rubio said the United States would remain forever tied to the continent even as it pushes for changes in the relationship and the international institutions that have been the bulwark of the post-World War II world order.
Rubio addressed the conference a year after Vice President JD Vance stunned the same audience with a harsh critique of European values. A series of statements and moves from the Trump administration targeting allies followed, including Trump’s short-lived threat last month to impose new tariffs on several European countries in a bid to secure U.S. control of Greenland, a semiautonomous territory of NATO ally Denmark.
On Friday, German Chancellor Friedrich Merz opened this year's gathering by calling for the United States and Europe to “repair and revive trans-Atlantic trust together,” saying that even the U.S. isn’t powerful enough to go it alone in a world whose old order no longer exists. He made clear that Europe will stand by its approach to free speech and climate change, and rejects a “culture war” and protectionism.
Rubio argued that the “euphoria” of the Western victory in the Cold War led to a "dangerous delusion that we had entered ‘the end of history,’ that every nation would now be a liberal democracy, that the ties formed by trade and by commerce alone would now replace nationhood ... and that we would now live in a world without borders where everyone became a citizen of the world.”
“We made these mistakes together, and now together we owe it to our people to face those facts and to move forward to rebuild,” Rubio said. He said that, under Trump, the U.S. “will once again take on the task of renewal and restoration.”
“This is why we Americans may sometimes come off as a little direct and urgent in our counsel," he said. "This is why President Trump demands seriousness and reciprocity from our friends here in Europe.”
“In a time of headlines heralding the end of the trans-Atlantic era, let it be known and clear to all that this is neither our goal nor our wish,” Rubio said. “Because for us Americans, our home may be in the Western hemisphere, but we will always be a child of Europe.”
“We have fought against each other, then reconciled, then fought and reconciled again. And we have bled and died side-by-side on battlefields from Kapyong to Kandahar," Rubio said. "And I’m here today to make it clear that America is charting the path for a new century of prosperity. and that once again, we want to do it together with you, our cherished allies and our oldest friends.”
Rubio said that the United Nations “still has tremendous potential” but that, on today's most pressing matters, “it has no answers and has played virtually no role.”
Speaking directly after Rubio, Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi offered a contrasting view.
“The main reason for the inadequacy of the current international system is not the United Nations itself, but the fact that some countries magnify differences, pursue national priorities ... and even revive the Cold War mentality," he argued. "All these have undermined the basis of trust, worsened the atmosphere of cooperation, and made the operation of international mechanisms difficult.”
At a meeting with European FMs, China's foreign minister told his French and German counterparts that Beijing was not to blame for Europe's economic and security problems as he pushed for more cooperation at a summit in Munich, a foreign ministry statement said Saturday.
Wang Yi made the comments at a meeting with France's Jean-Noel Barrot and Germany's Johann Wadephul on the sidelines of the Munich Security Conference late Friday.
He sought to promote China as a reliable partner of the European Union at a time when the bloc is trying to reduce its dependence on both Beijing and an increasingly unpredictable Washington.
"China's development is an opportunity for Europe, and Europe's challenges do not come from China," Wang said, according to the statement.
Warning that "unilateralism, protectionism, and power politics" were on the rise globally, he said he hoped Europe would "pursue a rational and pragmatic policy towards China".
"The two sides are partners, not adversaries; interdependence is not a risk; intertwined interests are not a threat; and open cooperation will not harm security."
The meeting came against the backdrop of trade tensions between the two giant economies and disputes over what the EU sees as China's support for Russia's war in Ukraine.
The EU is seeking to cut its reliance on China for strategic goods like rare earths while also rebalancing a trade relationship that sees it run a large deficit with the world's second-largest economy.
In recent years, the two sides have clashed over Chinese electric-vehicle exports, which threaten Europe's car industry and which Brussels argues are based on unfair subsidies, and Chinese tariffs on EU goods ranging from cheese to cognac.
Wang urged Germany and France to help "give a clear direction for the development of China-Europe relations".
In a separate meeting with Wadephul -- also on Friday -- Wang touted economic and trade cooperation as "the cornerstone of China-Germany ties", according to a foreign ministry readout.
Wang also met Britain's foreign minister, Yvette Cooper, telling her that Beijing and London should "explore more potential for cooperation", while the two sides also discussed Ukraine and Iran.
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