Rubio Extends Olive Branch at Munich Security Conference — But Europe's 'Sleeping Giant' Is Already Waking Up
U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio delivered a carefully calibrated address to the Munich Security Conference on Saturday, striking a markedly different tone from the combative speech Vice President JD Vance delivered at the same forum one year ago. Declaring that America would 'always be a child of Europe,' Rubio sought to reassure anxious allies that the trans-Atlantic alliance remains a cornerstone of U.S. foreign policy — even as President Donald Trump continues to demand fundamental reforms to the relationship and the international institutions that underpin it. The 62nd Munich Security Conference, which runs through Sunday, has drawn some 50 world leaders to the Bavarian capital at a moment of extraordinary geopolitical flux. Russia's war in Ukraine grinds into its fourth year with a new round of peace talks scheduled for next week in Geneva. Iran's nuclear ambitions loom large, with U.S. military planners preparing for the possibility of sustained, weeks-long operations against Tehran. And the question of whether Europe can — or will — build the independent defense capabilities to match its economic heft has moved from abstract debate to urgent policy priority. But beneath Rubio's warmer rhetoric, the substance of Washington's message remained largely unchanged: Europe must spend more, contribute more, and accept that the post-Cold War order it relied upon is gone. What has changed is the European response. From German Chancellor Friedrich Merz's revelation of confidential talks on a joint European nuclear deterrent, to British Prime Minister Keir Starmer's declaration that Europe is a 'sleeping giant' ready to awaken, the continent's leaders are no longer simply asking America for reassurance — they are beginning to build an alternative.