Rubio tells Athens audience that West faces ‘future of atrophy, servitude and decline’
by Vaughn Cockayne · The Washington TimesSecretary of State Marco Rubio cautioned that Western nations face critical choices over the coming decade that will decide whether they remain global leaders or face a “future of atrophy, servitude and decline.”
Speaking Wednesday in Athens, Mr. Rubio told a crowd of diplomats, Greek government officials and reporters that the convictions and philosophies the ancient Greeks handed down, which inspired America’s founders, have weakened.
“Over time, we in the West came to feel ashamed of the very things that made us exceptional. We felt embarrassed that our achievements set us apart from the rest of the world. Our prosperity somehow became a source of guilt. We no longer believed that we deserve and earned our greatness,” he said.
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He added that the “fierce individuality and relentless ambition” that once defined the West has eroded as Western nations “opened our borders and outsourced our industry and allowed our militaries to wither and decay.”
Mr. Rubio also bemoaned the outsourcing of “our decisions to global bureaucracies,” in an apparent reference to the United Nations and the International Criminal Court.
Under President Trump, Mr. Rubio said, the U.S. is working to reverse the decay by unapologetically pursuing its national interests and encouraging its partners to do the same.
He pointed to the growing partnership between the U.S. and Greece on issues such as defense and immigration enforcement.
The secretary also struck a positive tone on U.S.-European relations, which he said are vital for international security. He said the recently signed trilateral pact on Greenland security shows the partnership remains strong.
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The agreement, signed last month by Mr. Trump, Greenland Prime Minister Jens-Frederik Nielsen and Danish Prime Minister Mette Frederiksen, expands the existing security deal, gives the U.S. two more defense areas and bars non-NATO countries from maintaining a military presence on the Arctic island.
Wednesday’s speech echoed Mr. Rubio’s February address to the Munich Security Conference, where he warned that Western civilization could be wiped out by mass migration.
Mr. Rubio’s Athens speech capped a brief visit to Greece, the latest stop on a short European trip. Earlier this week, he visited Iceland to meet his counterpart. He’s scheduled to travel to Portugal next.
The secretary landed early Wednesday for a closed-door meeting with his Greek counterpart, Foreign Minister George Gerapetritis.
Mr. Rubio told reporters after the meeting that Greece is a “very close strategic partner” on border security, a partnership he said is necessary to ensure the “birthplace of the West” isn’t threatened by “bad decisions.”
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He also said Greece agrees with Mr. Trump’s assessment that NATO allies need “to take on a greater share of the burden defending their continent.”
“Greece is doing just that,” Mr. Rubio told reporters, adding that Athens is on track to meet Mr. Trump’s benchmark of 5% of gross domestic product on defense spending, though he did not say when he expects it to reach that goal.
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Vaughn Cockayne
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