ASIA
15 February 2026
Marco Rubio at the Munich Security Conference
US Secretary of State Marco Rubio offered the clearest vision of America’s diplomatic and geopolitical perspectives on 14 February at the Munich Security Conference.
US Secretary of State Marco Rubio offered the clearest vision of America’s diplomatic and geopolitical perspectives on 14 February at the Munich Security Conference.
Here are the key points:
– the euphoria at the end of the Cold War led us to a dangerous delusion, that we had entered “the end of history”.
– This was a foolish idea that ignored both human nature and the lessons of over 5,000 years of recorded human history… resulting in large parts of our societies being deindustrialized, shipping millions of working and middle-class jobs overseas, and handing control of our critical supply chains to both adversaries and rivals.
– We increasingly outsourced our sovereignty to international institutions while many nations invested in massive welfare states at the cost of maintaining the ability to defend themselves.
– And in a pursuit of a world without borders, we opened our doors to an unprecedented wave of mass migration that threatens the cohesion of our societies, the continuity of our culture, and the future of our people.
– We made these mistakes together, and now, together, we owe it to our people to face those facts and to move forward, to rebuild.
– Under President Trump, the United States of America will once again take on the task of renewal and restoration – it is our preference and it is our hope to do this together with you, our friends here in Europe – We are part of one civilization – Western civilization – a great civilization that has every reason to be proud of its history, confident of its future, and aims to always be the master of its own economic and political destiny.
– Deindustrialization was not inevitable. It was a foolish but voluntary transformation of our economy that left us dependent on others for our needs and dangerously vulnerable to crisis.
– Mass migration is not, was not, isn’t some fringe concern of little consequence. It was and continues to be a crisis which is transforming and destabilizing societies all across the West…we must also gain control of our national borders.
– And finally, we can no longer place the so-called global order above the vital interests of our people and our nations. In a perfect world, all of these problems and more would be solved by diplomats and strongly worded resolutions. But we do not live in a perfect world.
– And this is why we do not want our allies to be weak, because that makes us weaker. We want allies who can defend themselves so that no adversary will ever be tempted to test our collective strength.
– What we want is a reinvigorated alliance that recognizes that what has ailed our societies is not just a set of bad policies but a malaise of hopelessness and complacency.
And I am here today to leave 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.
Here are the key points:
– the euphoria at the end of the Cold War led us to a dangerous delusion, that we had entered “the end of history”.
– This was a foolish idea that ignored both human nature and the lessons of over 5,000 years of recorded human history… resulting in large parts of our societies being deindustrialized, shipping millions of working and middle-class jobs overseas, and handing control of our critical supply chains to both adversaries and rivals.
– We increasingly outsourced our sovereignty to international institutions while many nations invested in massive welfare states at the cost of maintaining the ability to defend themselves.
– And in a pursuit of a world without borders, we opened our doors to an unprecedented wave of mass migration that threatens the cohesion of our societies, the continuity of our culture, and the future of our people.
– We made these mistakes together, and now, together, we owe it to our people to face those facts and to move forward, to rebuild.
– Under President Trump, the United States of America will once again take on the task of renewal and restoration – it is our preference and it is our hope to do this together with you, our friends here in Europe – We are part of one civilization – Western civilization – a great civilization that has every reason to be proud of its history, confident of its future, and aims to always be the master of its own economic and political destiny.
– Deindustrialization was not inevitable. It was a foolish but voluntary transformation of our economy that left us dependent on others for our needs and dangerously vulnerable to crisis.
– Mass migration is not, was not, isn’t some fringe concern of little consequence. It was and continues to be a crisis which is transforming and destabilizing societies all across the West…we must also gain control of our national borders.
– And finally, we can no longer place the so-called global order above the vital interests of our people and our nations. In a perfect world, all of these problems and more would be solved by diplomats and strongly worded resolutions. But we do not live in a perfect world.
– And this is why we do not want our allies to be weak, because that makes us weaker. We want allies who can defend themselves so that no adversary will ever be tempted to test our collective strength.
– What we want is a reinvigorated alliance that recognizes that what has ailed our societies is not just a set of bad policies but a malaise of hopelessness and complacency.
And I am here today to leave 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.