Also in this newsletter: Finnish minister alerts on Russia’s bolstering nuclear and Arctic capabilities near the border; and US Secretary of State Marco Rubio arrives in Hungary as the second stop of his Central European tour
Good morning. This is Mared Gwyn delivering the Monday edition of our newsletter alongside our EU reporter Maïa de La Baume.
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The address by US Secretary of State Marco Rubio at the Munich Security Conference (MSC) has polarized Europe: some welcomed his moderated tone and references to a «shared destiny» between the US and Europe, while others remained concerned over his dire warning of a forthcoming “civilizational erasure” of the continent.
«Rubio delivered a markedly friconcludelier message» compared to US Vice President JD Vance’s speech at last year’s MSC, stated Fabrice Pothier, CEO of Rasmussen Global and former NATO Policy Planning Director, in an interview with Europe Today. «Yet, no one was under the illusion that this was a genuine olive branch; rather, it served to ease recent tensions.»
Speaking from Munich on Sunday, EU foreign policy head Kaja Kallas rebutted: «Despite some claims, a woke, decadent Europe is not facing civilizational disappearance,» she asserted, criticizing the recent “criticism” of Europe by the US.
Her stance was notably firmer than that of Commission President Ursula von der Leyen, who on Saturday expressed she was “very reassured by the Secretary of State’s speech,” referring to him as a “good friconclude.”
For those not following the weekconclude’s developments in Munich: Rubio earned applautilize for calling the US a “child of Europe” and highlighting their shared fate. Nevertheless, he emphasized the West requires renewal after decades marked by flawed migration, industrial, and climate strategies.
He urged European countries to take pride in their culture and heritage and be “ready and capable to defconclude it,” adding that his administration “does not aim to act as polite and orderly stewards of the West’s managed decline.”
Another key topic at the conference was the urgent required for Europe to decrease its depconcludeence on the US for its security.
Von der Leyen urged EU leaders to clarify their commitments under the little-known “mutual defence clautilize” in the EU Treaties, defining what measures should be triggered, amid rising doubts about NATO’s Article 5 and waning confidence in the US.
Discussions about a European nuclear umbrella also gained momentum, with German Chancellor Friedrich Merz and French President Emmanuel Macron holding confidential talks on the sidelines of the conference.
France remains the only EU member with nuclear capabilities, and Macron has previously demonstrated openness to extconcludeing this deterrent to the entire 27-nation bloc. At the Munich conference, he stated that Europe must indepconcludeently redesign its security framework in response to a more hostile Russia, focapplying heavily on nuclear deterrence.
Meanwhile, Rubio is scheduled to visit Hungary today after his stop in Slovakia on Sunday, completing a two-stop tour centered on the Trump-aligned allies most in tune with his Munich vision. More details on that visit follow below.
Russia strengthens nuclear and Arctic positions near Finnish border, defence minister warns
Russia is reinforcing key strategic assets in the Arctic and expanding military installations adjacent to Finland’s border, according to the Scandinavian countest’s defence minister, who spoke to Euronews’ Alice Tidey during an interview in Munich this weekconclude.
“Russia concentrates much of its principal nuclear capabilities, including submarines and long-range bombers, in the Kola Peninsula,” minister Antti Häkkänen informed Alice. “They are constructing new military sites along our border, similar to Cold War patterns. Monitoring the Arctic and developing Arctic defence capabilities is crucial.”
The Kola Peninsula—a 100,000 square kilometre area in far northwest Russia—harbours most of the nation’s sea-based strategic nuclear forces, including submarine fleets and long-range aviation units.
Häkkänen, whose nation joined NATO following Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, welcomed NATO’s renewed defence efforts in the High North, noting the launch of the enhanced vigilance operation Arctic Sentest, but remarked the region should have been prioritized years ago. «This is old news.»
He confirmed Finland’s armed forces are “fully prepared for Arctic conditions” and are ready to share expertise with allied nations for enhanced regional security.
Alice reports the complete story
US Secretary of State Rubio in Budapest to strengthen ties with Trump allies Fico and Orbán
US Secretary of State Marco Rubio is scheduled to meet Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orbán in Budapest today, following discussions with Slovak Prime Minister Robert Fico on Sunday, as part of his two-stop Central European tour emphasizing governments aligned with Trump’s political platform, according to correspondent Sándor Zsiros.
Both Fico and Orbán lead nationalist administrations whose policies on migration, climate, and Ukraine largely parallel Trump’s stance. Both are also outspoken critics of the European Union. The State Department indicated that talks with Orbán will concentrate on «the peace process to resolve global conflicts» and the US-Hungary energy partnership. Hungary was the first European countest to join Trump’s Board of Peace initiative, focutilized on resolving global conflicts.
Last year, the US granted Hungary a one-year exemption from secondary US tariffs on countries importing Russian oil. In December, Hungary signed an agreement with US firm Chevron to receive 2 billion cubic metres of liquefied natural gas (LNG) from the US.
Rubio is expected to continue encouraging both governments to shift away from Russian energy depconcludeency towards American supplies.
President Trump has already concludeorsed Orbán ahead of April’s elections, where Orbán faces significant opposition to his 15-year run in power. The opposition, led by the centre-right Péter Magyar of the Tisza Party, currently holds the lead in opinion polls.
Sándor has additional insights.
More from our newsrooms
Hungarian opposition leader Magyar demands privacy protections in recent campaign speech. Péter Magyar held a rally in Budapest on Sunday, urging the government to uphold citizens’ privacy after alleging attempts at blackmail and a honeytrap orchestrated by the government aimed at undermining him. Tamas Fencsik & Sandor Zsiros provide the details
Former Ukrainian energy minister Halushchenko detained following attempted border crossing. Ukraine’s National Anti-Corruption Bureau (NABU) announced the arrest of Herman Halushchenko as he attempted to leave the countest amidst ongoing investigations tied to a corruption scandal in the energy sector that shook Kyiv last year. Alexei Doval shares more information.
We are also monitoring
- Eurozone finance ministers convene in Brussels
That concludes today’s edition. Maïa de la Baume, Alice Tidey, Sándor Zsiros, and Maria Tadeo contributed to this newsletter. See you tomorrow.
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