U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio called on Europe to help the Trump administration refashion the global order with a focus on sovereignty, reindustrialization and military strength.

Speaking at the Munich Security Conference on Saturday, he made no apology for the Trump administration’s repeated calls to annex Greenland or at times harsh criticisms of Europe, but he took a conciliatory tone — stressing that the U.S. wants to cooperate with Europe to “revitalize an old friendship.”

“We do not want allies to rationalize the broken status quo rather than reckon with what is necessary to fix it,” Rubio said. “We in America have no interest in being polite and orderly caretakers of the West’s managed decline.” 

Rubio pleaded with the assembled world leaders to get on board with the critique of the global order that drove President Donald Trump’s return to office last year. He rehashed the administration’s complaints on the failure of international institutions, unfettered trade and energy policies that he said are “impoverishing our people,” as well as “mass migration that threatens the cohesion of our societies.” 

“We made these mistakes together, and now together, we owe it to our people to face those facts and to move forward,” he said. “It is our preference, and it is our hope to do this together with you, our friends here in Europe. 

“For the United States and Europe, we belong together,” he said.  

His speech came after top European leaders on Friday said they were willing to rebuild closer relations with the U.S., but underlined that the continent is proud of its own traditions, will enforce its own rules and will press to lessen its dependencies on outsiders — including the United States.

In his speech, Rubio emphasized the U.S. and Europe’s economic, military, cultural and spiritual connections — but underplayed the common values that had once underpinned the Western alliance.

“We want Europe to be strong. We believe that Europe must survive,” he said

He added: “Our destiny is and will always be intertwined with yours because we know that the fate of Europe will never be irrelevant to our own national security.”

Despite Ukraine’s fate looming over the conference this year, Rubio made no significant mention of Russia’s full-scale invasion, except as an example of how the United Nations has failed.

“It has not solved the war in Ukraine. It took American leadership and partnership with many of the countries here today just to bring the two sides to the table in search of a still elusive peace,” he said.

However, Rubio’s critique of Europe was gentler than Vice President JD Vance’s scorching attack on the continent last year, although it still pointed to the MAGA culture wars some Trump aides are increasingly waging in Europe. 

“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,” he said.

European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen said she was “very much reassured by the speech of the secretary of state,” calling him a “good friend” and a “strong ally.”

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