German Foreign Minister Johann Wadephul said US Secretary of State Marco Rubio had delivered a “very positive speech underlining our common basis” at the 2026 Munich Security Conference. Wadephul said Rubio had pointed to the long success story of the trans-Atlantic partnership and his key message was: “Let’s do it again.”
Europe should take the offer, the German Foreign Minister emphasized, and consider its own contribution to the success of the trans-Atlantic alliance.
Wadephul said that European countries – including Germany – and the United States were “reading from the same page” with regard to threats lying ahead, even if their policy priorities didn’t completely overlap. Wadephul said Rubio’s speech was “a different category” than the controversial address delivered by US Vice President JD Vance at the 2025 conference, which had surprised and rattled many attendees.
Asked if a more conciliatory tone from the US side could run the risk of some European countries once again slowing down their efforts to increase investment into defense, the German FM said: “We can’t allow anybody to go back to sleep, because the threats are there.”
On Ukraine, the US and European positions were aligned, Wadephul said, pointing to Rubio’s speech: “He said, and this is also our position, that we have to put more pressure on Russia as the United States is doing, in their talks, and in their negotiations with India, so Putin really feels economic pressure.”
