It’s not a new message from the U.S. to its allies, but Sec. of State Marco Rubio is being praised for delivering it in a more conciliatory tone at the Munich Security Conference on Saturday.
President Donald Trump has rankled Europeans with harsh comments on NATO (North Atlantic Treaty Organization) and trade imbalances.
Vice President J.D. Vance at this event last year accused Europe as suffering from a moral and cultural decline and of free-riding on the U.S. commitment to defense and its funding. His speech was seen as dismissive and hostile.
Rubio recognized the U.S. as a “child of Europe” aligned with Europeans by faith in Jesus Christ, culture, history, and heritage.
“We are part of one civilization – Western civilization. We are bound to one another by the deepest bonds that nations could share, forged by centuries of shared history, Christian faith, culture, heritage, language, ancestry, and the sacrifices our forefathers made together for the common civilization to which we have fallen heir,” Rubio said.
Rejecting Western decline
He walked the line between a more welcoming tone while also calling on Western Europeans to reject societal decline – particularly in terms of their borders -- and reindustrialize. Mass immigration is a civilizational threat that undermines social cohesion, he told his audience.
“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,” Rubio said.
While Rubio praised Western Civilization, issues between Iran and the U.S. were also on display. Thousands gathered outside the conference in support of Iran’s exiled Crown Prince Reza Pahlavi.
America is charting a path for a new century of prosperity, he said.
“We want to do it together with you, with a Europe that is proud of its heritage and of its history; with a Europe that has the spirit of creation of liberty that sent ships out into uncharted seas and birthed our civilization; with a Europe that has the means to defend itself and the will to survive,” Rubio said.
It’s the same message the Trump administration has delivered to Europe for quite some time, Blaze Media host Auron MacIntyre said on American Family Radio Monday. A year ago, Vance encouraged Europe to take up its own defense, MacIntyre told show host Jenna Ellis, but this time Rubio’s speech took the message to a deeper level.
Rubio reinforced the idea that Europe needs to see itself as capable of providing its own defense and successful trade policies, “but it also tied the reason for that to Americans’ appreciation for European heritage, the fact that our way of life, our languages, laws, and customs flow from that connection between the United States and the Old World,” MacIntyre said.
Rubio’s approach resonated with French Foreign Minister Jean-Noel Barrot.
“Referring to (our) common legacy can only be welcomed with applause in Europe,” he said.
“We want them to be strong because they are where we came from, but also because if they are strong, they make better allies,” MacIntyre said.
France in 2024 reported more than 150,000 asylum claims with rising numbers of immigrants attempting to cross the English Channel. The number of people living illegally in France is roughly 700,000, according to France’s Interior Minister Laurent Nunez.
It’s an estimated 745,000 in the United Kingdom, according to Oxford University research. The U.K. is comprised of England, Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland.
Tensions have flared on the immigration issue between France and the U.K. Last summer the two signed a cooperation agreement to deal with immigration. For every immigrant returned by the U.K. to France, the U.K. will accept one asylum seeker with family ties.
National pride isn’t a bad thing
Growing popularity for right-wing political parties Alternative for Germany (AFD) and Restore Britian show that Europeans are concerned with the individual identities and cultures of their nations, MacIntyre said.
That’s why Rubio’s delivery hit home with many.
“So many European countries now are desperately hungry for leaders who aren't just talking about how to raise the GDP or how to maximize the length that health care will be provided to people. They're talking about them as a nation, as a people who have the right to care about who enters their country and how that shifts and changes things,” MacIntyre said.
Rubio’s speech said the same things about America, MacIntyre said, that people who are a part of Western Civilization have a right to decide who can enter their countries, a right to defend their economies.
It’s not wrong for people to prefer their nations, MacIntyre said.
Rubio’s speech delivered “some tough love” when it highlighted the tendency of Europeans to spend more on social programs than defense.
“Because it was blended in with that cultural significance, that tie, I think, really did ultimately make it something that was a unifying speech,” MacIntyre said.
