Secretary of State Calls on European Leaders to Defend Western Civilization in Munich Security Conference Speech

Click here to watch the Secretary’s full remarks. 

Key excerpts from Secretary Rubio’s speech can be found below: 

It is time to unshackle our ingenuity and build a new Western century. 

“Together we can reindustrialize our economies and rebuild our capacity to defend our people.  But the work of this new alliance should not be focused just on military cooperation and reclaiming the industries of the past.  It should also be focused on, together, advancing our mutual interests and new frontiers, unshackling our ingenuity, our creativity, and the dynamic spirit to build a new Western century. Commercial space travel and cutting-edge artificial intelligence; industrial automation and flex manufacturing; creating a Western supply chain for critical minerals not vulnerable to extortion from other powers; and a unified effort to compete for market share in the economies of the Global South. 

“Together we can not only take back control of our own industries and supply chains – we can prosper in the areas that will define the 21st century.” 

Armies do not fight for abstractions. They fight for a people, a nation, and a way of life. That is what we are defending. 

“National security, which this conference is largely about, is not merely a series of technical questions—how much we spend on defense or where and how we deploy it. These are important questions, but they are not the fundamental one. The fundamental question we must answer at the outset is: what exactly are we defending?   

“Because armies do not fight for abstractions. Armies fight for a people; armies fight for a nation.  Armies fight for a way of life.  And that is what we are defending: 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.” 

We are all part of one civilization: Western civilization. 

“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.” 

Mass migration is not some fringe concern of little consequence. 

“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.” 

Under President Trump, America will once again take on the task of renewal and restoration. It is our hope to do this together with our friends in Europe. 

“Under President Trump, the United States of America will once again take on the task of renewal and restoration, driven by a vision of a future as proud, as sovereign, and as vital as our civilization’s past.  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.” 

Our predecessors recognized that decline was a choice, and it was a choice they refused to make. 

“But together, our predecessors recognized that decline was a choice, and it was a choice they refused to make.  This is what we did together once before, and this is what President Trump and the United States want to do again now, together with you.” 

We in America have no interest in being polite and orderly caretakers of the West’s managed decline. 

“For we in America have no interest in being polite and orderly caretakers of the West’s managed decline.  We do not seek to separate, but to revitalize an old friendship and renew the greatest civilization in human history. 

“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.  An alliance – the alliance that we want is one that is not paralyzed into inaction by fear – fear of climate change, fear of war, fear of technology.  Instead, we want an alliance that boldly races into the future.” 

We do not want allies shackled by guilt and shame. We want allies who are proud of their culture and heritage and are willing to help us defend it. 

“We want allies who can defend themselves so that no adversary will ever be tempted to test our collective strength.  This is why we do not want our allies to be shackled by guilt and shame.  We want allies who are proud of their culture and of their heritage, who understand that we are heirs to the same great and noble civilization, and who, together with us, are willing and able to defend it. And this is why we do not want allies to rationalize the broken status quo rather than reckon with what is necessary to fix it.” 

The only fear we have is the fear of the shame of not leaving our nation prouder, stronger, and wealthier for our children and an alliance ready to defend our people and safeguard our freedom to shape our own destiny. 

“The only fear we have is the fear of the shame of not leaving our nations prouder, stronger, and wealthier for our children. An alliance ready to defend our people, to safeguard our interests, and to preserve the freedom of action that allows us to shape our own destiny – not one that exists to operate a global welfare state and atone for the purported sins of past generations.  An alliance that does not allow its power to be outsourced, constrained, or subordinated to systems beyond its control; one that does not depend on others for the critical necessities of its national life; and one that does not maintain the polite pretense that our way of life is just one among many and that asks for permission before it acts.” 

I am reminded by my own story that both the history and fate of the United States and Europe will always be linked together. 

“The year that my country was founded, Lorenzo and Catalina Geroldi lived in Casale Monferrato in the Kingdom of Piedmont-Sardinia.  And Jose and Manuela Reina lived in Sevilla, Spain. I don’t know what, if anything, they knew about the 13 colonies which had gained their independence from the British empire, but here’s what I am certain of: They could have never imagined that 250 years later, one of their direct descendants would be back here today on this continent as the chief diplomat of that infant nation. And yet here I am, reminded by my own story that both our histories and our fates will always be linked. Together we rebuilt a shattered continent in the wake of two devastating world wars. When we found ourselves divided once again by the Iron Curtain, the free West linked arms with the courageous dissidents struggling against tyranny in the East to defeat Soviet communism. We have fought against each other, then reconciled, then fought, then reconciled again.  And we have bled and died side by side on battlefields from Kapyong to Kandahar.” 

America is charting the path for a new century of prosperity and we want to do it with Europe. Yesterday is over. The future is inevitable. Our destiny awaits together. 

“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. 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.  We should be proud of what we achieved together in the last century, but now we must confront and embrace the opportunities of a new one – because yesterday is over, the future is inevitable, and our destiny together awaits.” 

The ideas and success of our shared past foreshadow the wonders that await us in our future, but only if we are unapologetic in our heritage and proud of this common inheritance. 

“It was here in Europe where the ideas that planted the seeds of liberty that changed the world were born.  It was here in Europe where the world – which gave the world the rule of law, the universities, and the scientific revolution.  It was this continent that produced the genius of Mozart and Beethoven, of Dante and Shakespeare, of Michelangelo and Da Vinci, of the Beatles and the Rolling Stones.  And this is the place where the vaulted ceilings of the Sistine Chapel and the towering spires of the great cathedral in Cologne, they testify not just to the greatness of our past or to a faith in God that inspired these marvels.  They foreshadow the wonders that await us in our future.  But only if we are unapologetic in our heritage and proud of this common inheritance can we together begin the work of envisioning and shaping our economic and our political future.” 

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. 

“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 we cannot continue to allow those who blatantly and openly threaten our citizens and endanger our global stability to shield themselves behind abstractions of international law which they themselves routinely violate. This is the path that President Trump and the United States has embarked upon.  It is the path we ask you here in Europe to join us on.” 

The United Nations still has tremendous potential to be a tool for good in the world but we cannot ignore that on the most pressing matters before us, it has no answers and has played virtually no role. 

“The United Nations still has tremendous potential to be a tool for good in the world.  But we cannot ignore that today, on the most pressing matters before us, it has no answers and has played virtually no role.  It could not solve the war in Gaza.  Instead, it was American leadership that freed captives from barbarians and brought about a fragile truce.  It had 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. It was powerless to constrain the nuclear program of radical Shia clerics in Tehran.  That required 14 bombs dropped with precision from American B-2 bombers.  And it was unable to address the threat to our security from a narcoterrorist dictator in Venezuela. Instead, it took American Special Forces to bring this fugitive to justice.” 

Controlling who and how many people enter our countries is not an expression of hate or xenophobia. It is a fundamental act of national sovereignty. 

“Controlling who and how many people enter our countries, this is not an expression of xenophobia.  It is not hate. It is a fundamental act of national sovereignty.  And the failure to do so is not just an abdication of one of our most basic duties owed to our people.  It is an urgent threat to the fabric of our societies and the survival of our civilization itself.” 

Our destiny is and will always be intertwined with Europe. This is why President Trump demands seriousness and reciprocity from them. 

“And so, this is why we Americans may sometimes come off as a little direct and urgent in our counsel.  This is why President Trump demands seriousness and reciprocity from our friends here in Europe.  The reason why, my friends, is because we care deeply.  We care deeply about your future and ours.  And if at times we disagree, our disagreements come from our profound sense of concern about a Europe with which we are connected – not just economically, not just militarily. We are connected spiritually and we are connected culturally. 

“We want Europe to be strong.  We believe that Europe must survive, because the two great wars of the last century serve for us as history’s constant reminder that ultimately, 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.”