Marco Rubio calls for a 'new alliance' at Munich Security Conference: 'The fate of Europe will never be irrelevant to our own'

Washington undertook a global "renewal and restoration." "And while we are prepared, if necessary, to do this alone, it is our preference and it is our hope to do this together with you, our friends here in Europe," Marco Rubio assured top European leaders at the Munich Security Conference on Saturday.

The secretary of state appeared at a time of apparent ramp-up in the turbulent relationship with European allies, rocked since Trump's inauguration by issues such as the role of NATO and the future of Greenland. Despite the tensions, Rubio remarked that the United States and Europe "belong together." "We want Europe to be strong. We believe that Europe must survive."

The Cuban-rooted diplomat blamed the post-war world for falling under the illusion that "every nation would now be a liberal democracy." "That the ties formed by trade and by commerce alone would now replace nationhood," and also, "That the rules based global order would now replace national interests, and that we would now live in a world without borders were everyone would became a citizen on the world."

"This was a foolish idea," he sentenced. An idea that "ignored both human nature and the lessons of over five thousand years of recorded human history."

Rubio listed the problems that, in his eyes, generated that illusion, avoiding proper names: countries that took advantage of free trade by subsidizing their companies (in probable allusion to China); the deindustrialization and handing over of key supply chains to other countries (e.g., rare earths); delegation of self-defense to multinational organizations (Europe to NATO); energy policies to "appease a climate court" (Paris Agreement, the Endangerment Finding).

His diagnosis was similar to that of J.D. Vance on the same stage last year, in a viral speech that shook Europe. Though less confrontational. "We made this mistake together," the secretary told European leaders. "And now, together, we owe it to our people to face those facts and to move forward, to rebuild." Although, he apostilled, if it must, the United States will go it alone.

Common roots, common future

Trump's top foreign policymaker highlighted the historic union between Europe and the United States. "America was founded 250 years ago, but the roots began here on this continent long before," he asserted. The ideas of freedom, the rule of law, universities and the revolution in science.

"The men who settled and built the nation of my birth arrived on our shores carrying the memories and traditions and the Christian faith of their ancestors as a sacred inheritance. An unbreakable link between the old world and the new. We are part of one civilization: Western Civilization."

That common history, he asserted, grounded in centuries of common history, explains why Washington sometimes seems, "my friends," "a little direct and urgent in our council." "The reason why, my friends, is we care deeply. We care deeply about your future and ours."

And, then, Rubio received the first applause of the speech, "The two great wars of the last century served to us as histories constant reminder that ultimately our destiny will always be intertwined with yours." "The fate of Europe will never be irrelevant to our own."

The new Europe - U.S. partnership

The new partnership Rubio invited exceeds the military and industrial, "it should also be focused on shackling our ingenuity on new frontiers." Commercial exploitation of space, artificial intelligence, a new and secure supply chain for rare minerals, economic collaboration with the global south. "We can prosper in the areas that will define the 21st century."

Finally, the secretary insisted on the importance of having secure borders, far from xenophobia, he said, controlling immigration is a duty and a necessity, and to stop putting "the global order over the vital interest of our people and our nations."