Albares and Rubio will coincide for the first time this Friday at the Munich Security Conference

Eduardo González The Minister of Foreign Affairs, José Manuel Albares, will attend this Friday the Munich Security Conference, the most important annual event on this subject in the world, where he will coincide for the first time with the Secretary of State of the United States, Marco Rubio, with whom he has not had any contact to date, either in person or by telephone. The Munich Security Conference (MSC) 2025, which will be held from February 14 to 16, will address, as main issues, the future of the international order, multilateral governance reforms, regional conflicts and transnational challenges, such as climate and food insecurity. The Munich Security Report (MSR) 2025, presented on February 10, will serve as a basis for the debates at the Munich Conference. Among those attending Friday's session is US Secretary of State Marco Rubio, who will then embark on a tour of Israel, Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates, according to the State Department. The Munich Conference will therefore be the first time that Albares and Rubio have coincide since the latter took office on 21 January. On 3 February, the minister acknowledged, during a breakfast briefing organised by the Europa Press agency, that he "still" has not met the new US Secretary of State, but he was "sure" that he will meet him at the next NATO ministerial meeting, for which a date has not yet been announced. For the moment, the Spanish minister has not had any contact with the US Secretary of State and the diplomatic sources contacted by The Diplomat have not been able to specify whether any kind of meeting between Albares and Marco Rubio is planned on the margins of the Munich Conference. Since taking office, Rubio has held telephone conversations or face-to-face meetings with more than thirty counterparts from around the world, including those from India, Australia, Japan, the Philippines, Canada, the United Arab Emirates, South Korea, Turkey, Costa Rica, Israel, Egypt, China, Vietnam, Denmark, Lithuania, Latvia, New Zealand, Hungary, Italy, Germany, Morocco, France, the Dominican Republic, the United Kingdom, Qatar, Algeria, Estonia, Finland, Belgium, Saudi Arabia, Mexico, Argentina, Ukraine and Sweden, as well as the EU High Representative for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy, Kaja Kallas. The forum The event, according to the organizers, takes place “at a crucial time, shortly after the inauguration of the new US administration, the start of a new EU legislative period and just one week before the German federal elections”, so it will be “an important forum to shape the dynamics of global security, with the attendance of around 60 heads of state and government, 150 ministers and leaders of major international organizations.” Among the main attendees are the President of the European Commission, Ursula von der Leyen; the President of the European Parliament, Roberta Metsola; the President of the European Council, António Costa; the High Representative for Foreign and Security Policy of the EU, Kaja Kallas; the EU Commissioner for Defence and Space, Andrius Kubilius; and the Secretary General of NATO, Mark Rutte. The United States will be represented by the US Vice President, J.D. Vance, who is scheduled to meet, on the sidelines of the Conference, with the President of Ukraine, Volodymyr Zelensky. In fact, the forum comes shortly after the telephone conversation between the presidents of the United States and Russia, Donald Trump and Vladimir Putin, in which both committed to start “immediate” negotiations to end the war in Ukraine.

Related Content

The Cervantes Institute will hold its Annual Directors' Meeting in Jerez at the end of July

The Government of Peru dismisses its ambassador in Spain, who will continue in office until the end of July

Albares condemns Russia's latest massive attacks on Ukraine, which left 13 dead

Spanish Consul in Tripoli meets personally with Alicia Armesto, the activist detained in Libya

Spain rejects military escalation in southern Lebanon and demands respect for the ceasefire